Two giant pandas named Ru Yi and Ding Ding were unveiled to visitors at the Moscow Zoo on June 5. The official handover ceremony was attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The pandas will spend 15 years in Russia as part of a joint research project aimed at studying the ways of preserving the animals and the possibility of returning them into the wild. 

Earlier, the Moscow Zoo joined a program for panda conservation, protection and research. The young pandas, considered to be the unofficial symbol of China, were handed over by China to Russia during the April visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Beijing. This event was dedicated to the celebration of the 70th anniversary of establishing bilateral diplomatic relations.