Two giant pandas arrive in Atlanta, US

Two giant pandas have arrived from China at Zoo Atlanta, located in the southern US state of Georgia. During his recent visit to the United States, Chinese President Xi Jinping referred to the pair as an "envoy of friendship" between the two countries.

US television network CNN reported on Sunday that the two pandas, on loan from the Chinese government, arrived at the zoo. Footage shows a truck adorned with a picture of a panda carrying the bears away from the airport.

The pair, a male named Ping Ping and a female named Fu Shuang, were raised in Chengdu in the province of Sichuan.

Panda loans to the US began after President Richard Nixon visited China in 1972, and have been regarded as a symbol of friendship between the two countries for more than 50 years.

Xi made his reference to the pandas at a welcoming ceremony held ahead of the US-China summit on his visit to the US earlier this month.

Six pandas are now on loan to the US. In contrast, Japan has been without any giant pandas for the first time since 1972 after two pandas at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo were relocated to China in January.

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