Alaskan man gifted new motorcycle by Putin during Trump summit
An employee of the Russian embassy in the United States handed the man, Mark Warren, the keys to his new Ural motorcycle in the parking lot of the Anchorage hotel where the Russian delegation was staying.
"I have to say that this is a personal gift from the President of the Russian Federation," Andrei Ledenev, the embassy employee, told Warren.
The white-haired, bespectacled Warren, who Reuters was unable to contact for comment, was shown hopping aboard his new bike, Ledenev behind him and another man in the sidecar, to take it for a spin.
"It's night and day," Warren said. "I like my old one, but this one is obviously much better."
"I'm speechless, it's amazing. Thank you very much."
The unexpected gift by the Russian leader came after reporters with Russian state television Channel 1 met Warren by chance on the streets of Anchorage ahead of the summit.
The reporters stopped to admire Warren's bike, which is manufactured by Ural, whose original factory was founded in 1941 in what was then Soviet Russia.
Warren told a reporter, Valentin Bogdanov, that he struggled to obtain spare parts for the bike, including a new starter, because the manufacturing plant is "located in Ukraine."
"So for you, if they resolve this conflict here in Alaska, I mean Putin and Trump, it will be good?" Bogdanov asks Warren.
"Yes, it will be good," the Alaskan replies.
Ural, which is headquartered in Washington State, says that all of its motorcycles are assembled in Kazakhstan. The company pulled all its production out of Russia after the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine.
Ural did not immediately reply to a request for comment outside working hours in the U.S.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Bessent says US tariff revenues to rise 'substantially,' focus on reducing debt
By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he expects a big jump in revenues from sweeping tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, and said the money would be used first to start paying down the federal debt, not to give rebate checks to Americans. Bessent, speaking in an interview on CNBC's "Squawk Box," said he expected to substantially revise upward his earlier estimate of $300 billion in revenues from the tariffs, but declined to be more specific. Bessent said he had not spoken with Trump about the idea of using funds from the tariffs to create a dividend for Americans, but stressed that both of them were "laser-focused" on paying down the debt. "I've been saying that tariff revenue could be $300 billion this year. I'm going to have to revise that up substantially," Bessent said. "We're going to bring down the deficit to GDP. We'll start paying down the debt, and then at that point that can be used as an offset to the American people." The U.S. economy could return to the "good, low-inflationary growth" of the 1990s, Bessent said, but he blamed higher interest rates for problems plaguing some pockets of the economy, singling out housing and lower-income households with high credit card debt. A cut in the Federal Reserve's key interest rate - which Trump has continually pressed for - could help facilitate a boom or pickup in home building, which would help keep prices down in one to two years, he said. The U.S. Census Bureau on Tuesday reported a small increase in groundbreaking for single-family homes and permits for future construction in July, even as high mortgage rates and economic uncertainty continued to hamper home purchases. Trump's wide-ranging import tariffs have kept the Federal Reserve from lowering interest rates this year, with most central bank policymakers wary of easing borrowing costs until they have more confidence the levies will not rekindle inflation, which has yet to return to the Fed's 2% target. Recent indications of softening in the job market, however, have largely convinced investors that the Fed will cut rates by a quarter of a percentage point when it meets in mid-September. That expectation has helped bring down mortgage rates in recent weeks. Bessent has previously said a 50-basis-point cut in rates was warranted. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
USDA will heighten scrutiny for solar and wind projects on farms, but some may continue
By Leah Douglas and Nichola Groom WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Tuesday it will heighten scrutiny of some solar and wind projects but stopped short of ending all agency support for clean energy projects on U.S. farms, according to a press release. The release came a day after Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced on X that her agency would no longer fund wind and solar on productive farmland. Rather, the agency said it will move away from funding larger renewable energy facilities, the Tuesday release said. Wind and solar projects will not be eligible for the agency's Rural Development Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan Program, the USDA said, and ground-mounted solar systems over 50 kilowatts and those that cannot document historical energy usage will not qualify for the Rural Energy for America Program Guaranteed Loan Program, according to the release. "USDA will ensure that American farmers, ranchers and producers utilizing wind and solar energy sources will install units that are right-sized for their facilities," the release said. The agency will also not allow the use of solar panels "manufactured by foreign adversaries" in USDA-funded projects, the release said. The USDA did not immediately respond to questions about whether smaller-scale projects are still eligible for agency support. Thomas Clark, director of marketing and communications for solar installation company Northstone Solar in Whitefish, Montana, said potential clients in his region had already been impacted by the USDA's pullback in project funding. "If you are trying to do a ground mount system on farmland, which a couple years ago would not have been an issue, now they don't want that to happen," Clark said. "And that just seems like you're sticking it to farmers that are trying to find ways to diversify their revenue and be able to stay in business." Rollins said in the release that prime farmland has been displaced by solar farms and the new investment guardrails are meant to keep farmland affordable. Yet data from the USDA shows that a very small amount of rural land is used for solar and wind projects and that most continues in agricultural production even after the projects are installed. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
"I've had enough... I'm refusing to back down": Rep. Nicole Collier confined inside TX State Capitol
'I've had enough, just like the American people have had enough of the Trump takeover.' Texas state Democratic Rep. Nicole Collier spoke to MSNBC from the Texas State Capitol on Monday. Collier made the decision to confine herself inside after the Texas GOP required police surveillance as a condition for her release. She is refusing to sign a waiver for the law enforcement escort. Solve the daily Crossword
