Giant panda Ding Ding is seen with her mother Hai Zi. (Photo: chinanews.com)

A pair of giant pandas will leave for Moscow, Russia for collaborative research, a panda research base in southwest China's Sichuan Province said Friday.

Male Ru Yi, born in 2016, and female Ding Ding, born in 2017, are scheduled to depart Chengdu on April 29 and arrive in Moscow at 10:00 pm Beijing Time the same day, the research base said.

The pair of giant pandas will live in the Moscow Zoo for 15 years, according to the research project.

On February 28, the China Wildlife Conservation Association and the Moscow Zoo signed an agreement on the protection and research cooperation of giant pandas.

The Moscow Zoo has sent full-time keepers and veterinarians to China in advance to learn about the breeding and medical care of giant pandas.