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Entered 2024.05.08 07:00 Modified 2024.05.08 07:16
Putin, in power for life, gives Kim Jong-un a ‘Russian Rolls Royce’ Aurus
The license plate number is ‘7271953’, commemorating North Korea’s Victory Day on July 27, 1953.
It seems to be reminiscent of the Stalin-Kim Il-sung relationship where cars were exchanged during the Korean War.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who marked the start of his ‘lifelong rule’, is expected to visit North Korea for the first time in 24 years this year. Previously, President Putin gave the ‘Aurus’ to the Chairman of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, also known as ‘Putin’s Limousine’ and ‘Russia’s Rolls-Royce’, in February.
Chairman Kim often uses this Aurus as an official car. Last March, he appeared in this car with his daughter Joo-ae at the completion ceremony of a greenhouse farm near Pyongyang. According to Japan’s Mainichi Shimbun on the 9th, this scene was broadcast on Chosun Central TV, and a Japanese university professor said his eyes were drawn to the car’s license plate when he saw it. The license plate number is ‘7271953’. This number referred to July 27, 1953, when the Korean War Armistice Agreement was signed.
North Korea calls this day ‘Victory Day’, which means victory over the United Nations forces led by the United States. Of course, this is absurd. Nevertheless, Chairman Kim even advertises the image of him making and smoking a cigarette called ‘7.27’.
This is not the first time that a Russian luxury car has been given as a gift. Its origins date back to the Korean War. The Korean War could not have happened without the approval of Joseph Stalin, then Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and Chinese President Mao Zedong. In Myohyang Mountain in North Korea, there is an ‘Exhibition Hall of International Friendship’ which displays gifts from people from all over the world. The ‘Jis’ car, a gift from Stalin, is still on display there. The date of the donation was October 26, 1950. It was during the Korean War.
Stalin died on March 5, 1953, during the Korean War. A memorial rally was also held in Pyongyang. Kim Il-sung said at the time, “The Soviet Union has shown the world that it is the best friend of the Korean people,” and “We must forever engrave the teachings of Comrade Stalin.”
Asahi Shimbun’s analysis is that Kim Jong-un and Putin cannot be unaware of these events that happened during the Korean War. Putin is believed to have given Stalin a luxury car as a gift, and Kim Jong-un has ‘7271953’ engraved on the license plate. Putin’s Aurus is, of course, much more advanced than Stalin’s ZIS. It is Russia’s first luxury car brand and is used as a ceremonial vehicle for foreign leaders. It is said that 12.4 billion rubles (about 180 billion won) was spent on design and production alone. The price is sold in Russia for 40 to 80 million rubles (about 600 to 1.2 billion won) depending on options This Aurus will be produced in the former Russian Toyota plant in the future. According to Russian news agency RIA Novosti, Aurus production is scheduled to begin later this year at the former Toyota plant in St. Petersburg.
Toyota suspended production at its plant in St. Petersburg in September 2022 in response to Western sanctions against Russia following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In March last year, the plant was sold to Russia’s state-run Central Institute of Automotive and Engine Sciences (NAMI). Last month, a new Toyota sport utility vehicle (SUV) was spotted among Chairman Kim’s motorcade. NK News, an American media outlet specializing in North Korea, analyzed a video of Chairman Kim’s visit to Kim Il-sung Military University broadcast on Korean Central Television and reported that six Toyota Land Cruiser 300s were among the 18-vehicle procession.
NK News explained that this is the latest evidence that North Korea is evading UN sanctions that have banned the transfer of transport to North Korea since 2017. The Land Cruiser is a member of the Toyota J300 series produced starting in 2021, and the price per unit starts at $80,000 (about 110 million won).
Tokyo = Correspondent Kim Il-gyu
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