The most valuable gift Biden received was from President Putin.

During his first year as US President, Joe Biden received gifts totaling $46,000 from foreign leaders, with the most expensive gift coming from his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

NBC News reported on February 24, citing a new report from the U.S. State Department, that foreign leaders and officials have given President Biden 22 gifts worth between $433 and $12,000. U.S. federal law requires the State Department to list gifts sent to the president annually; gifts worth more than $415 belong to the U.S. government, but President Biden has the right to purchase them at his own expense.

A special writing desk from the Kholuy lacquerware workshop, valued at $12,000, is the most expensive gift Biden has ever received. The gift was sent by Russian President Vladimir Putin after their summit in Geneva in June 2021.

US President Joe Biden. Photo: Reuters

Also in June 2021, First Lady Jill Biden received a silk rug worth $19,200 from the First Lady of Afghanistan.

The first gift a US president receives from a foreign leader is a crystal bowl filled with young sprigs of shamrock, a symbol of Ireland.

The leader who gave the most gifts was former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, with two dog bowls, two wool blankets, a set of ceramic cups and saucers, a pen, a mural depicting African-American abolitionist Frederick Douglass, and a face mask printed with the G7 conference logo. The total value of these gifts was $536.20.

The late Queen Elizabeth II, as is customary in the British Royal Family, gifted the White House occupant a photograph of herself in a silver frame worth $2,200.

Former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison gifted Mr. Biden a pair of leather boots from the RM Williams brand, valued at $500.

French President Emmanuel Macron gave President Biden the least expensive gift, a Dupont fountain pen worth $433.

According to reports, most of the gifts President Biden receives will be preserved by the National Archives. However, there are exceptions, such as a photograph of the Queen of England and a pen engraved with his childhood home in Scranton, Pennsylvania, gifted by former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Hoai Thanh