A new report shows first lady Jill Biden has received a long list of valuable gifts from foreign leaders during calendar year 2023.
According to the U.S. Department of State’s 2023 Federal Register, which details gifts to federal employees from government sources with a value of over $480, the first lady received an array of expensive gifts — ranging from jewelry to clothing, artwork, books, wine, and a bronze statue. The document cites that “non-acceptance would cause embarrassment to donor and U.S. Government.”
Two gifts that stand out, include a $14,063 “Steel Fragment Forget-Me-Not Flower Brooch,” from Oksana Markarova, Ambassador of Ukraine to the United
States, and a $20,000 “7.5 Carat Lab Diamond,” gifted by Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of the Republic of India.
While the report shows much of the gifts given to the Biden’s have been handed over to the National Archives and Records Administration, some gifts are being “retained for personal use.” The 7.5 carat lab diamond has been “retained for use official use in the East wing,” along with a $2,500 calligraphy gifted by Kishida Yuko, wife of the Prime Minister of Japan.
Other pricey items include a $3,400 pair of bangles from the Chairman of the Presidential Council of the State of Libya, Mohamed Younis A. Menfi; a scarf, sculpture, sweets, and book valued at $3,015 from the first lady of the Republic of Tunisia, Ichraf Chebil Ep Saied; and a $4,510 gift of furniture, a bracelet, a brooch, and a photograph album from the President Abdel Fattah and his wife, first lady Entissar El-Sisi, of the Arab Republic of Egypt.
According to CNN, the Central Intelligence Agency has said they have destroyed more than $132,000 in gifts to several CIA employees, which include watches, jewelry, and perishable items like wine and candy.
President Joe Biden himself also received a number of expensive gifts, including a $7,100 commemorative photo album from South Korea’s President Suk Yeol Yoon, who has recently been impeached, a $3,300 silver bowl gifted from the Sultan of Brunei, and a $2,400 collage from Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.
