Sochi Tomato is Idaho Potato's best friend / Дары Краснодарского края едут в Америку pic.twitter.com/ifFddu6dOv
— MFA Russia (@mfa_russia) May 12, 2015
During negotiations with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Sochi, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov gave his U.S. counterpart several presents, including Krasnodar tomatoes and potatoes, said Maria Zakharova, deputy director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's information and press department.
"Sergei Lavrov gave John Kerry Krasnodar tomatoes and potatoes, which are distant relatives of those that his U.S. counterpart once brought him," Zakharova said on Facebook.
Zakharova said Lavrov also gave Kerry a T-shirt with symbols of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
Kerry will also take home a T-shirt with symbols of Victory/ А еще Дж.Керри увезет домой футболку с символикой Победы pic.twitter.com/p3aXzUur2W
— MFA Russia (@mfa_russia) May 12, 2015
Kerry, for his part, "gave Lavrov a list of quotes of Russian media quotes that he believes do not reflect the real potential of the large-scale Russian-U.S. relations, which he believes need improvement," she said.
Almost 1.5 years ago, on January 13, 2014, Kerry gave Lavrov two potatoes from Idaho, U.S. Russian diplomats on the same day asymmetrically responded to the U.S. delegation by giving a pink hat with ear-flaps.
In January 2013 Kerry gave Lavrov 2 Idaho potatoes, today Lavrov gives back a whole basket of Sochi potatoes pic.twitter.com/XiLggJd57x
— Yury Barmin (@yurybarmin) May 12, 2015
Kerry said he had talked a lot with Lavrov during the Christmas holidays and promised to bring him back potatoes from Idaho. The U.S. secretary of state said Lavrov had promised to him that the potatoes would not be used to make vodka, but would be eaten.
Lavrov later said the potatoes from Idaho would be studied by Krasnodar experts.
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