In pictures: Pandas sent to Taiwan

China has sent two giant pandas to Taiwan, in a sign of improving relations between the mainland and the self-governing island.

Hundreds of security guards and armed police watched over the operation at Shuangliu airport in Chengdu, Sichuan province.

The pandas were given a rousing sent off, as workers and students turned out to cheer them on their way.

Their departure was shown live on television in China, where most people consider Taiwan to be part of Chinese territory.

Beijing has often given pandas as gifts to other countries, a practice which has become known as "panda diplomacy".

But the pandas are also a big tourist draw - their new home, Taipei zoo, is expecting them to attract about 30,000 visitors a day.

When put together, their names - Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan - mean reunion, which has angered Taiwanese separatists.

They were first offered to Taiwan three years ago but have only been accepted after a new government came to power.

After a three hour flight, Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan were offloaded at Taoyuan airport in Taiwan.

Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan will spend a month in quarantine before being released into their new glass and rock enclosure.

The zoo is hoping that with one male and one female panda, they could eventually have another addition to their collection.