Former US first lady Jill Biden has revealed that she considered buying a synthetic diamond gifted to her by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his 2023 state visit to Washington, but abandoned the idea after US officials valued the stone at eight times its stated price.
In her recently released memoir, View from the East Wing: A Memoir, Biden recounts receiving a 7.5-carat lab-grown diamond from Modi, who presented it as a symbol of India’s ambition to become a global leader in the synthetic diamond industry.
Under US ethics rules, gifts received by the president and first lady during official engagements belong to the federal government. However, recipients may purchase such gifts by paying their fair market value as determined by government appraisals.
“In the case of Modi’s diamond, the prime minister said that it had been handmade in his hometown for $2,500. He even had the bill of sale. I thought, Maybe I’ll buy it. Then the State Department appraised it at $20,000, so I did not,” Biden wrote.
The former first lady noted that government officials routinely took possession of gifts she received if they were deemed to have more than nominal value.
