Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
A diamond-studded gold ring made by Belgium’s diamond industry has been presented to US Ambassador to Belgium Bill White to be given to President Donald Trump, though a White House official said on Thursday that it has not yet reached him. The gift was unveiled at an event in Brussels marking America’s 250th birthday and comes months after Belgium’s diamond trade secured the removal of US tariffs on diamond imports.
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Trump, in a prerecorded video message, said: “A very special thank you to my friends from Antwerp for the magnificent Freedom 250 ring.” The ring, created by Antwerp’s diamond community and gifted on behalf of the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, also highlights the growing attention on expensive gifts linked to the US president.
The watch-sized 18-karat gold ring is set with 321 diamonds, 56 sapphires, 13 emeralds and six rubies. Its design includes two large letter “T”s next to the Stars and Stripes and the years “1776” and “2026”. It also features the numbers 45 and 47 in the shape of Superman’s logo, and a diamond-winged eagle with a ruby shield and an olive branch made of emeralds beneath a radiant “250” and the phrase “250 YEARS USA” etched in gold. The inside of the ring is engraved with the words: “Crafted in Antwerp for Donald John Trump.”
Isidore Morsel, president of the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, or AWDC, presented the ring on behalf of Antwerp’s centuries-old diamond community. “May this ring serve as a lasting reminder that true partnership like the finest natural diamonds are formed under pressure, endure the test of time, and shine brightest when built on trust,” Morsel said.
The gift comes after Belgium’s diamond industry won the removal of US tariffs on diamond imports. In September, the AWDC said it had “succeeded in securing a zero percent import tariff” on Antwerp’s annual exports of more than USD 2 billion of polished diamonds to the US. A spokesperson for the group said on Thursday that the AWDC gave “input” to the European Commission during its negotiations with Trump on a broad tariffs deal in 2025, but did not itself lobby the administration.
US presidents have wide discretion to accept gifts from domestic and foreign sources and can decide whether a gift is meant for them personally or for the nation. Gifts from foreign governments are barred under the Constitution’s foreign emoluments clause unless Congress agrees, though presidents may reimburse the Treasury with personal funds if they want to keep an official gift. Personal gifts are also meant to be listed in the president’s annual financial disclosure. Trump’s 2025 disclosure, released this week, listed a USD 250,000 sculpture showing his gesture after surviving a 2024 assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and tickets worth a combined USD 15,000 to 10 sporting events, including 10 for the upcoming World Cup final in New Jersey, from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. Four US ethics experts told The Associated Press that Trump has broken with a decades-old White House custom of avoiding such gifts.
The AWDC asked Antwerp-based high-end jeweller David Gotlib to make the ring. Neither the AWDC nor Gotlib gave a value for it, but two independent jewellers told AP they estimated it at between USD 25,000 and USD 35,000. Jewellery consultant Alexander Levinson, based in Paris and London, put the cost at USD 25,928, while Canadian luxury jeweller David Saad estimated it at USD 33,000 to USD 35,000. Both said roughly half the cost was for materials and half for labour.
The ring was presented on a star-spangled stage in Brussels, where musician Alexis Wilkins, the girlfriend of FBI Director Kash Patel, sang the US national anthem before a crowd of more than 8,000. White said he raised more than USD 5.5 million for the anniversary event from corporate sponsors including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Intel, Google, Meta, Leonidas and Ferrero, and the AWDC said it also contributed funds. “The media was asking, ‘Why does it have to be so big?'” White said. “Because we are the United States of America!”
For now, the ring’s final destination remains unclear. White posted a photograph online on Wednesday showing himself wearing the ring and giving a thumbs-up, but the post was later deleted. The gift has drawn notice both for its timing, after the tariff decision, and for its place in a wider pattern of high-value gifts linked to Trump.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
