Sunday’s Mainichi ran a Kyodo report from New York saying that the Humane Society of the United States announced on Friday that New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has sent a letter to Tokyo Governor Koike asking her to support efforts to end ivory trade in Japan before the 2020 Summer Olympics. According to the group, 37 members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to Japanese Ambassador to the U.S. Sugiyama earlier this month asking the GOJ to join the effort to close domestic ivory markets. The paper wrote that international pressure on Japan regarding ivory trade has been increasing ahead of the Olympics.