A local man in Anchorage received a new Ural motorcycle as a personal gift from Russian President Vladimir Putin during last week’s summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian state television reported.
Mark Warren, the recipient, was handed the keys by a Russian embassy official in the parking lot of the Anchorage hotel where the Russian delegation was staying. “This is a personal gift from the President of the Russian Federation,” said Andrei Ledenev, the embassy staffer.
Footage aired on Channel 1 showed Warren, white-haired and wearing glasses, taking the new bike for a test ride with Ledenev and another man in the sidecar. “I’m speechless, it’s amazing. Thank you very much,” Warren said, calling the motorcycle “night and day” compared to his old one.
The gift followed a chance encounter between Warren and Russian reporters, who had admired his older Ural bike the day before. Warren told them he struggled to source spare parts, since the original plant was based in Ukraine.
Ural, now headquartered in Washington State, said it shifted production to Kazakhstan after Russia invaded Ukraine and no longer manufactures in Russia. The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.