Ducks, bears, parrots and... a lion: Vladimir Putin's strange gift to Kim Jong-un
Steph Deschamps / November 26, 2024
Russia and North Korea have never been so close. The war in Ukraine and their shared hatred of the United States have brought the two countries closer together. To prove their friendship, the leaders exchange gift after gift.
Russian President Vladimir Putin offered North Korea dozens of animals for a zoo in Pyongyang, Russia announced on Wednesday, a new illustration of the rapprochement between these two countries, allies against the West and in the conflict in Ukraine.
“One African lion, two brown bears, two domestic yaks, five white cockatoos, 25 pheasants of various species and 40 mandarin ducks were transferred from Moscow Zoo to Pyongyang Zoo,” said the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources.
The minister, Alexander Kozlov, who visited North Korea, stressed that it was a “gift from Vladimir Putin”.
His ministry released a video showing the animals, encased in wooden crates, being unloaded from a cargo plane. It also shows the lioness in her new glass and concrete cage at Pyongyang Zoo.
Vladimir Putin recently gave 24 pedigree horses to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who gave dogs to the Russian president.
The two countries, which regard the United States as an existential threat, have been forging a high-speed rapprochement since Russia launched its assault on Ukraine in February 2022.
They signed a mutual defense pact this year, and Pyongyang is accused of supplying large quantities of ammunition, missiles and even 50,000 soldiers to the Russian army.
The West also fears that Moscow could in return help North Korea accelerate its nuclear and missile programs.
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