Permit Hassle a 2-Ring Circus : U.S. and Japan in Standoff Over 3 Elephants

Three mammoth Asian elephants of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus slated to perform in Japan may be left sitting on the docks of Oakland as victims of a diplomatic “Catch-22” between the United States and Japan.

The trio of pachyderms, part of a contingent of 16 elephants scheduled to sail today to Tokyo in the first Japanese tour in the history of The Greatest Show on Earth, find themselves subject to an import-export permit standoff between the two countries.

Thirteen of the 16 elephants already have been cleared to leave the United States and enter Japan. Circus officials say the three remaining elephants are subject to a different treaty because of their later date of birth.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus assistant vice president for legal affairs Bob Fleshner says the standoff comes from conflicting positions of U.S. and Japanese trade officials.

“The U.S. officials say they will issue the export permit as soon as the Japanese issue an import permit,” Fleshner says. “The Japanese say they will issue an import permit as soon as the U.S. issues an export permit. So we’re caught in an international trade tug-of-war.”

Circus officials were exploring a solution through Washington channels. The special unit of The Greatest Show on Earth is scheduled to make its Japan debut in Sapporo early in July, part of the 16-week engagement in the country which includes a seven-week run in the heart of downtown Tokyo.