Putin gifts Kim Jong Un a luxury car because he 'liked it,' in violation of UN North Korea sanctions

Russian President Vladimir Putin has gifted a luxury car to Kim Jong Un, in a show of unity with his North Korean counterpart.

Kim “liked the car, and so the decision was made” to present it to him as a gift, Peskov said, according to Russia's state-run Tass news agency. “North Korea is our neighbour, our close neighbour.”

The Russian-made car for Kim’s personal use was delivered on Sunday by a Russian delegation, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

Putin’s gift, which, reportedly costs hundreds of thousands of pounds, violates United Nations sanctions imposed on North Korea for its nuclear weapons program.

But the ban on luxury goods sales to the country has not prevented Kim from appearing in a range of high-end vehicles over the years.

Kim’s sister – and senior Pyongyang official – Kim Yo Jong thanked Putin on her brother’s behalf and said, “the gift serves as a clear demonstration of the special personal relations between the top leaders of the (North Korea) and Russia,” according to KCNA.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian state news agency TASS the car was an Aurus, the luxury carmaker founded in 2018 to produce Russia’s official state cars.

Russia has repeatedly fired North Korean-supplied short-range ballistic missiles at Ukrainian targets in recent weeks.

US officials fear that North Korea may be able to use a tighter relationship with Russia to loosen China’s influence.

During Kim’s visit to Russia last September, Putin showed his Aurus limousine to the North Korean leader.

Kim Jong Un also endorsed the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine and said, “I will always be standing with Russia.”

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