U.S. President Donald Trump has been gifted a luxurious, oversized gold ring encrusted with diamonds.
According to the Associated Press on July 3 (local time), the diamond industry in Antwerp, Belgium, presented the watch-sized gold ring to Bill White, the U.S. Ambassador to Belgium, last week, requesting that it be delivered to President Trump.
The ring, decorated with 321 diamonds, 56 sapphires, 13 emeralds, and 6 rubies, features the numbers 1776 and 2026—representing the year of the nation's founding and the current year—formed in diamonds. The phrase "250 YEARS USA" is also engraved in 18-karat gold.
The inside of the ring bears the inscription, "Made in Antwerp for Donald John Trump."
Antwerp, the global hub for diamond distribution where over 80 percent of the world's supply passes through, had faced difficulties due to the tariff war initiated by President Trump since his inauguration in February of last year. However, the industry found relief in September of last year when it was granted an exemption from import tariffs on more than 2 billion dollars worth of processed diamonds exported to the United States annually.
Isidore Mörsel, president of the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC), which oversees the centuries-old Antwerp diamond industry, said at the presentation ceremony last week, "May this ring be a lasting reminder that, like the finest natural diamonds, true partnerships are forged under pressure, endure the test of time, and shine brightest when built on trust."
In a pre-recorded video message revealed at the "Freedom 250" event held in Brussels on June 28 to celebrate the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, President Trump responded, "I sincerely thank my friends in Antwerp for the wonderful 'Freedom 250' ring."
A White House official, who requested anonymity, told the Associated Press that the ring has not yet been delivered to President Trump.
The AWDC reportedly commissioned the creation of the ring to David Gottlieb, a high-end jeweler in Antwerp.
While neither the AWDC nor Gottlieb disclosed the exact price of the ring, jewelry experts estimated its value to be between 25,000 dollars (approximately 38 million won) and 35,000 dollars (approximately 54 million won).
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)