Thousands of people gathered at a Japanese zoo on Sunday to bid farewell to the country’s last two giant pandas, who are scheduled to return to China on Tuesday.

Emotions ran high at Tokyo’s Ueno Zoo as people lined up for three and a half hours to get a last look at baby twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei.

This occurred at a time when relations between Tokyo and Beijing were extremely tense. Relations deteriorated sharply after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Japan would get involved militarily if China attacked Taiwan.

The twins’ departure will mark the first time a panda has left Japan without a panda since the two countries normalized diplomatic relations in 1972.

The People’s Republic of China has a giant panda gesture of goodwill Founded in 1949, we serve our international allies and competitors.

However, China retains ownership of all pandas it leases to foreign countries, including cubs born overseas. In return, the host country pays an annual fee of about $1 million (about £790,000) per pair of pandas.

The Tokyo metropolitan government said about 108,000 people vied for one of 4,400 slots for a final look at the zoo’s popular pandas.

One woman told the BBC: “I’ve been bringing my son here since he was a baby so I hope it’s a good memory for him. I’m happy to be here today to remember them.”

Another woman recalled witnessing a panda growing up. “It’s so nice to see them grow, especially since they were so young,” she said.

A visitor was also seen sobbing as he said goodbye to the bear.

Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei are Born in 2021 His mother, Shinshin, and father, Lili, were rescued at Ueno Zoo while they were sent to Japan for breeding research.

Recently, China’s panda loan coincided with a major trade deal. In 2011, during negotiations over a deal to supply China with salmon meat, Land Rover cars and energy technology, an agreement was reached to lend two pandas to Scotland’s Edinburgh Zoo.

Many pandas have been returned to China in recent years, and loan agreements typically last for 10 years, but extensions are common.

However, the outlook for new panda financing to Japan remains uncertain. escalating column.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments regarding Taiwan have infuriated the Chinese government, which considers the autonomous island to be part of its territory and has not ruled out the use of force for “reunification” with Taiwan.

Since then, both sides have engaged in increasingly hostile actions and rhetoric toward each other. Earlier this month, China tightened export controls on rare earth products to Japan.