Japanese sad as last two pandas leave for China

Japanese panda fans are gathering for the final public viewing at Tokyo's Ueno zoo before twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei return to China.

Their departure on Tuesday will leave Japan with no pandas for the first time in half a century, and the chances of getting a replacement are poor, with Tokyo's relations with Beijing at their lowest point in years.

China first sent pandas to Japan in 1972, a gift meant to mark the normalisation of diplomatic ties between the two wary neighbours. The cuddly black-and-white bears immediately won Japanese hearts, and a dozen successors have become national celebrities.

The latest departing pandas twins have attracted massive crowds despite a one-minute viewing limit in the panda zone set by the zoo.

Visitors, many of them carrying panda-themed toys, call out the bears' names and use smartphones to capture them as they nibble bamboo and stroll around.

Beijing lends pandas to other countries but maintains ownership, including over any cubs they produce. Xiao Xiao and his sister Lei Lei were born in the Ueno zoo in 2021.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun, asked about China sending new pandas to Japan, said: "I know giant pandas are loved by many in Japan, and we welcome Japanese friends to come visit them in China."

Japan has faced increasing political, trade and security tensions with China, which was angered by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi 's recent remarks that potential Chinese action against Taiwan, the self-governing democratic island Beijing claims as its own, could spark Japanese intervention.

Ties between Japan and China have been fraught since Japanese aggression in the 19th century.

There are still territorial disputes in the East China Sea as China's rise is accompanied by security threats and increasing economic influence in the region.

Japan's top government spokesperson, Minoru Kihara, acknowledged on Thursday that the Japanese consulate in Chongqing has been without a consul for a month because China has delayed approval of a replacement.

Pandas have long been part of Chinese diplomacy, serving as an unofficial mascot. Beijing lends them to other countries as a sign of goodwill and as part of research and conservation programs.

The first pair of pandas, Kang Kang and Lan Lan, that China gifted to Japan arrived in Ueno in 1972.