Russian President Vladimir Putin meets North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the Vostochny Сosmodrome, in eastern Russia. Sputnik
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the Vostochny Сosmodrome, in eastern Russia. Sputnik
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the Vostochny Сosmodrome, in eastern Russia. Sputnik
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the Vostochny Сosmodrome, in eastern Russia. Sputnik

Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin dine on crab dumplings, sturgeon and beef


Neil Murphy
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Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un feasted lavishly during an an official dinner, after their talks in the east of Russia on Wednesday.

The leaders were offered a menu including duck and fig salad, crab dumplings, sturgeon and beef with a choice of Russian wines, a Kremlin reporter said.

The menu began with a salad of duck, fig and nectarine followed by Russian "pelmeni" dumplings made with Kamchatka crab and then a White Amur fish soup and a sorbet from sea buckthorn.

For the main course, the pair had a choice of sturgeon with mushrooms and potatoes or an entrecote of marbled beef with grilled vegetables.

For dessert, they were offered red bilberries from the taiga (snow forest) with pine nuts and condensed milk. White and red wines from the Divnomorskoye Manor – co-owned by Mr Putin's long-time ally, businessman Gennady Timchenko – were also available.

The leaders held talks at Russia's Vostochny Cosmodrome, as Moscow grows increasingly isolated in the West over its offensive in Ukraine.

Mr Putin toasted to the "strengthening of future co-operation" with the secretive nation during the dinner.

Mr Kim proposed a toast to Mr Putin's health and said he was confident the Russian army and people would triumph against "evil".

The food on offer at the summit was in contrast to what is available to the citizens of North Korea, where there is a continuing food crisis.

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a meeting at the Vostochny Сosmodrome in Russia's far-eastern Amur region on Wednesday. Reuters
    Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a meeting at the Vostochny Сosmodrome in Russia's far-eastern Amur region on Wednesday. Reuters
  • Mr Putin and Mr Kim arrived at the Vostochny Cosmodrome ahead of planned talks that could lead to a weapons deal. AFP
    Mr Putin and Mr Kim arrived at the Vostochny Cosmodrome ahead of planned talks that could lead to a weapons deal. AFP
  • Mr Putin and Mr Kim examine an Angara rocket launch pad during their meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome. AP
    Mr Putin and Mr Kim examine an Angara rocket launch pad during their meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome. AP
  • Mr Putin and Mr Kim during the visit to the Vostochny Cosmodrome. AFP
    Mr Putin and Mr Kim during the visit to the Vostochny Cosmodrome. AFP
  • Mr Putin and Mr Kim were accompanied by head of Russian state space corporation Roscosmos Yuri Borisov, left, during the visit. EPA
    Mr Putin and Mr Kim were accompanied by head of Russian state space corporation Roscosmos Yuri Borisov, left, during the visit. EPA
  • Mr Kim arrives at the Vostochny Сosmodrome. Reuters
    Mr Kim arrives at the Vostochny Сosmodrome. Reuters
  • Kim Yo-jong, sister of Mr Kim, arrives at the Vostochny Cosmodrome. AFP
    Kim Yo-jong, sister of Mr Kim, arrives at the Vostochny Cosmodrome. AFP
  • Mr Kim disembarks from his train after crossing the border to Russia at Khasan on Tuesday. AP
    Mr Kim disembarks from his train after crossing the border to Russia at Khasan on Tuesday. AP

In February, it was reported that North Korea had cut rations to its soldiers for the first time in more than two decades.

North Korea has over recent decades suffered serious food shortages, including famine in the 1990s, often a result of natural disasters such as floods damaging harvests.

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Rating: 4.5/5

Groom and Two Brides

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The drill

Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.

Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”

Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”

Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.” 

US tops drug cost charts

The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.

Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.

In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.

Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol. 

The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.

High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.

Polarised public

31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all

Source: YouGov

Updated: September 13, 2023, 11:45 AM