Robert Kraft the owner of the New England Patriots revealed having a conversation with Vladimir Putin, where he claimed that Putin put on one of his Super Bowl rings and “took it without permission” after making a chilling comment.
During a visit with the Russian president in Saint Petersburg in 2005, Kraft showed Putin the ring. After Putin made a joke about how he “could kill someone with this ring”, he put it in his pocket and kept it and later left the room with three bodyguards.
Kraft said:
“I took out the ring and showed it to [Putin], and he put it on and he goes, ‘I can kill someone with this ring.’”
“I put my hand out and he put it in his pocket, and three KGB guys got around him and walked out.”
Despite wanting the ring back, Kraft claims that he was advised by White House staff not to risk causing World War III over a piece of jewellery.
He continued: “It would really be in the best interest of US-Soviet relations if you meant to give the ring as a present.
“I really didn’t [want to]. I had an emotional tie to the ring, it has my name on it.
Of course, the interaction was not truly a gift exchange — it was much closer to a strong-arm robbery. Kraft said he hesitated to accept that he would not get his ring back.
“I really didn’t [want to],” he said according to the UK Mirror. “I had an emotional tie to the ring, it has my name on it. I don’t want to see it on eBay.”
But the White House was hardly sympathetic to Kraft’s situation, at least not as he remembers it.
“There was a pause on the other end of the line, and the voice repeated, ‘It would really be in the best interest if you meant to give the ring as a present,’” Kraft said.
What happened in 2005 is similar to the current administration’s response to the Ukraine crisis. Joe Biden can impose sanctions and issue “strong declarations” to Putin all he wants, but when it comes down to it, he does not want to challenge him.
Whether it’s a piece of jewelry or an entire country, the premise remains the same. Eventually, someone must show Putin he cannot keep taking things that aren’t his.
Sources: The Western Journal, Iris Mirror, Marca, Mirror
