A pair of giant pandas donated as a gift to Taiwan by the Chinese mainland have arrived in Taipei.

A chartered aircraft with the two pandas, Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan, flew out from Shuangliu Airport in Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan, Tuesday for the three-hour flight.

Zheng Lijun, Deputy Director of the Mainland's State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, spoke at a sending off ceremony for the two bears.

"Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan will sow the seeds of peace, solidarity and friendship on Taiwan's soil, with the good wishes of the 1.3 billion mainland compatriots. They will build a bridge across the Straits, and will witness a peaceful development of cross-Straits relations and prosperity on both sides. "

The four-year-old pandas, one male and one female, will be housed in the Taipei city zoo and will go on display to Taiwan residents next month.

Also on board the plane were seventeen seedlings of the Chinese Dove Tree. They are a special gift for Taiwan from the Qiang ethnic group from Wenchuan County of Sichuan, the most badly damaged area in the May 12 earthquake.

The Chinese mainland announced in May 2005 it would donate two giant pandas to Taiwan. But their departure was delayed for more than three years until improved cross-Straits relations made their journey a possibility.