- Putin gifted Kim Jong Un a luxury Russian car, defying UN sanctions.
- The gift strengthens the bond between the Russian and North Korean leaders.
- It likely violates the UN’s ban on transporting luxury goods to North Korea.
Russian President Vladimir Putin gifted North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un a luxury Russian car, openly defying UN sanctions and strengthening the two leaders’ close bond.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russia’s RIA state news agency that the car — an Aurus Senat limousine — previously belonged to Putin himself, Reuters reported.
He said Putin decided to give the car to Kim after he showed it to him during a visit to Russia’s Vostochny Cosmodrome in September.
Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images
“So this decision was made,” Peskov said, according to Reuters. “North Korea is our neighbor, our close neighbor, and we intend, and will continue, to develop our relations with all neighbors, including North Korea.”
WPK officials, including Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, accepted the car on his behalf on Sunday, state news outlet KCNA reported. She said the gift served as a reminder of the “special personal relations” between the two leaders, the publication said.
The gift likely violated the United Nation’s ban on transporting luxury goods and vehicles to North Korea. The ban was part of several major sanctions against North Korea in 2006 to punish it for its nuclear program.
This wouldn’t be the first time Kim Jong Un has gotten around the sanctions. He is known to be a fan of luxury vehicles and has been seen with a Mercedes, a Rolls-Royce, a luxury Maybach, and several Lexus SUVs through the years, according to multiple reports.
The gift highlights the two leaders’ strengthening relationship, which is more significant than ever amid Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Business Insider reported in October that North Korea had sent Russia more than 1,000 containers of munitions, adding that the country was on track to become “one of Russia’s most significant foreign arms suppliers.”
A recent report by Norway’s Intelligence Service said that support from North Korea in addition to China, Belarus, and Iran is helping Russia gain the “military upper hand” in the war.
“Russia’s position in the war is stronger than it was a year ago, and the country is in the process of seizing the initiative and gaining the upper hand militarily,” the Focus 2024 report said.
“The Kremlin is expected to step up its war effort in the months ahead. The prospect of real negotiations is dim, and all signs point to the war continuing throughout 2024.”
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s alliances in Europe and the US are faltering due to a lack of approved funds.
A US Army spokesperson told BI on Monday that it could run out of funding to support Ukraine and its Europe and Africa Command if Congress doesn’t approve a new aid package soon.
“We just saw the Vice President pledge continued US support for Ukraine and NATO,” the spokesperson said, referencing comments made by Kamala Harris at the Munich Security Conference in Germany.
“But if there’s no money, there’s no ability for us to back up words. Words are great, but actions speak louder than words,” they added.
