6 Countries That Wooed Trump With Lavish Gifts – And What They Got in Return
US foreign policy is apparently for sale. Here’s how much it costs.
Donald Trump is an expert in the art of the deal when the deal is for himself. It didn’t take long for world leaders to understand that about the US president and use it for their benefit.
Here is a list of gifts and deals foreign leaders struck with the businessman-turned-president, and what benefits (maybe coincidentally?) came next.
It is important to note that the gold, the crown, and everything else on this list were exchanged on the sidelines of larger deals between the two countries. While all US presidents have received gifts in the past, the gifts received by Trump are worth 100 times more than the combined value of gifts received by every other US president since 2001.
1. Switzerland
What they gave: A delegation of Swiss billionaires gave Trump an engraved gold bar worth $130,000 and a Rolex desk clock.
What they got: Tariffs lowered from 39% to 15% 10 days later.
2. Qatar
What they gave: A luxury Boeing 747 jetliner to the US government, to serve as the new Air Force One. According to ABC News, ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump Presidential Library at the end of his term.
What they got: Three days after the jetliner was offered, Qatar became the first customer for Raytheon’s Fixed Site – Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aerial System Integrated Defeat System (FS-LIDS), designed to counter unmanned aircraft.
3. South Korea
