Japan has reported a threat to be left without pandas due to tensions with China.

Japan may lose all the big pandas in its zoos due to the aggravation of political relations with China amid statements by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi about Taiwan. This was reported on November 22 by the Kyodo news agency.

For many years, China has been pursuing a policy of so-called "panda diplomacy," according to which Beijing leases its pandas to other countries for a long time. At the end of the agreement, the lease is either extended or the pandas return to their homeland, depending on the countries' relations with China. According to the agency, the only remaining panda pair in Japan, the twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei from Tokyo's Ueno Zoo, are due to return to China in February under a lease agreement.

The situation allegedly worsened after Takaichi's recent statements. She said Tokyo could deploy self-defense forces in the event of a Chinese attempt to establish control over Taiwan. These words provoked a sharp reaction from China. The diplomatic tension calls into question not only the fate of the remaining pandas, but also the possibility of obtaining new animals in the future.

Farewell visits continue at the Ueno Zoo, as the institution received "huge crowds of visitors" over the three—day weekend. According to Kyodo, residents of Kyoto noted that pandas are "special animals that calm people down just by being seen."

The agency recalls that in June, Japan has already returned four pandas from the Wakayama Prefectural Zoo. If Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei also go to China, it will leave Japanese zoos without these animals for the first time in decades.

They have a premiere: will Takaichi change relations between Russia and Japan

The elected head of government wants to become the new Thatcher and already intends to revise the pacifist article of the constitution.

On November 18, the Chinese portal Sohu reported that Takaichi's statements about his readiness to deploy self-defense forces in the event of China's attempt to establish control over Taiwan caused a crisis in international relations, and the reaction of the United States and Russia was a slap in the face for the politician. China's response was immediate: a Chinese Navy electronic reconnaissance ship was detected about 70 km from an important Japanese defense point, Kagoshima. The publication interprets this event as a warning to Tokyo, signaling China's determination to defend its interests in the region.

At the same time, Sohu said that Russia's harsh reaction to the rhetoric of the new Japanese leadership was a clear signal to Tokyo amid tensions between Japan and its neighbors. It was noted that she followed from the Russian Federation less than a day after Takaichi's words about the possible use of self-defense forces in the event of Beijing's attempt to establish control over Taiwan.

Prior to that, on November 11, it was reported that Russia had indefinitely banned entry to 30 Japanese citizens. Now the official representative of the Japanese Foreign Ministry Toshihiro Kitamura, journalists and columnists of the Nikkei newspaper, professors of Hitotsubashi University and other Japanese figures will not be able to visit Russia.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.