MERCEDES-BENZ

German brand turns its back on ''big brother'' Kim
Kim Jong-un has a problem with their cars. Like other world leaders, he shows preference for Mercedes' top-of-the-line limousines, but unlike his colleagues, he can not afford them in the normal way. This is because the embargo imposed by the US and European Union on North Korea prevents manufacturers from exporting their vehicles there.
Last year, Kim Jong-Un was seen on several occasions using a Rolls-Royce Phantom the Armor, one of the most expensive armored limousines on the market, in a country where per capita income is around $ 1,800, compared to 33,000.
However, on his visit to Russia this year, Kim showed up on a Mercedes Maybach S600 Pullman Guard, identical to the ones Mercedes exports to the whole world but not to North Korea. The new acquisition of the "great leader" caused some astonishment, similar to what had already happened with the Phantom, forcing Daimler's spokesman, Silke Mockert, to state that "Mercedes has no idea how that vehicle went to North Korea, "adding that the German group is keen to" respect the laws in force when it sells its vehicles. "
"We have had no business with the country for more than 15 years and we scrupulously comply with the embargoes enacted by the United States and the European Union, not only in relation to North Korea, but also to any of its embassies," Mockert said.
Regarding how Kim could have gotten the limousine, Daimler admits that he "can not control the sale of used cars, much less the purchase of new vehicles by interposing person or some other more creative method." That is why Kim Jong-Un continues to ride in a limousine, accompanied by a battalion of bodyguards in a race step beside the vehicle. Autonews