The Tokyo Metropolitan Government signed a deal with China in July to lease two giant pandas for 10 years for Ueno Zoo, which has been without a panda since the famous Ling Ling died in 2008.
The animals are scheduled to make their Tokyo public debut next spring.
Behind the cuteness factor, China has been using pandas as a tool of international diplomacy for decades. Many pandas have been given or leased to other countries.
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