Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu Newsletters NPR Shop Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music The Best Music of 2025 All Songs Considered Tiny Desk Music Features Live Sessions Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Fresh Air Up First Featured Embedded The NPR Politics Podcast Throughline Trump's Terms More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop The Best Music of 2025 All Songs Considered Tiny Desk Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics For the first time in over 50 years, there are no pandas in Japan For the first time in more than half a century, Japan finds itself in a state of absolute panda-lessness, after the last pair of twin pandas returned to China last month. World For the first time in over 50 years, there are no pandas in Japan February 12, 20264:49 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition Anthony Kuhn For the first time in over 50 years, there are no pandas in Japan Listen · 3:10 3:10 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5707852/nx-s1-9645478" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript For the first time in more than half a century, Japan finds itself in a state of absolute panda-lessness, after the last pair of twin pandas returned to China last month. Sponsor Message
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
For the first time in more than half a century, Japan is pandaless (ph). No pandas. The country's last pair of giant pandas were returned to China last month. NPR's Anthony Kuhn was at the zoo to see them off and filed this dispatch on the state of panda diplomacy.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Speaking Japanese).
ANTHONY KUHN, BYLINE: An announcement tells visitors to Tokyo's Ueno Zoo that some areas are closed off and asks them not to block the roads as they bid farewell to the bears. A packed, hushed and mostly female crowd waits patiently for a truck to whisk the pandas to the airport to catch their Sichuan Airlines flight home.
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Speaking Japanese).
KUHN: A gentle wave of sighs, sniffs, goodbyes and wishes to stay healthy ripples through the crowd as the animals leave the zoo. Noriko Kobaiashi (ph) is here with her panda pals. She says she comes to the zoo about three times a week.
NORIKO KOBAIASHI: (Through interpreter) The pandas strike all sorts of poses, and watching them was just amazing. It was really a source of emotional support, something that soothed my soul.
KUHN: Oh, so it's a kind of panda therapy. Helps you relax.
KOBAIASHI: (Through interpreter) Yes, that's right.
KUHN: China dispatched its first pair of panda envoys to Japan in 1972 to seal the deal reached a month earlier when the two countries established diplomatic relations. Panda twins, Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, were born in Tokyo and returned to their native habitat in China by agreement after four years and seven months. They left as Tokyo and Beijing are locked in a diplomatic dispute over Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks last November. She told parliament that a Chinese blockade of Taiwan could trigger a Japanese military response. Since then, China has dialed up diplomatic and economic pressure, sending the message that the Taiwan issue is a red line Tokyo must not cross. Reporters ask Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun when China might loan Japan some more pandas.
GUO JIAKUN: (Trough interpreter) For specific questions, please contact the relevant Chinese authorities. We know there are many panda fans in Japan, and we welcome Japanese people to come to China to see the pandas.
KUHN: Panda superfan Takahiro Takaoji (ph) has done that. He says he's been to Sichuan Province to see the pandas on their home turf, and he's been coming to Ueno Zoo every morning for the past 15 years to snap millions of pictures of pandas in every adorable pose.
TAKAHIRO TAKAOJI: (Through interpreter) They're like family to me, and I love them dearly. Even after they return to China, I want to continue watching them grow.
KUHN: Kobaiashi and Takaoji have been around long enough to see cycles of ups and downs in Japan-China relations, and they're both confident that the pandas will be back eventually. For now, they both plan to keep coming to Ueno Zoo to marvel at other cute animals. For Takaoji, that means red pandas. For Kobaiashi, it's pygmy hippos. Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Tokyo.
(SOUNDBITE OF TOO MANY ZOOZ'S "PIECE")
INSKEEP: Pass the bamboo. Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor MessageBecome an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{1167:function(e,n,c){e.exports=c(323)},323:function(e,n,c){"use strict";c.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([c.e(1),c.e(2),c.e(3),c.e(4),c.e(84)]).then(function(e){c(3),c(1140),c(116),c(94),c(52),c(493),c(239),c(102),c(104),c(1141),c(143),c(1142),c(238),c(48),c(1143)}.bind(null,c)).catch(c.oe)}},[[1167,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();