The ongoing acrimony between the US and North Korea has now descended into farcical territory, as US officials are claiming that the Pyongyang regime owes the city of New York almost $157k in unpaid parking tickets.
North Korean diplomats have flatly denied such claim, stating that “It is false. Whenever we have a ticket, we pay. Because, you know, if we have three tickets the city does not allow us to renew their permission.”
Not so, the Americans say, adding that the monies owed date back to the 1990s in some cases.
The issue of parking privileges for diplomatic missions attending meetings in the hectic New York traffic environment has long been a bone of contention for all sides.
The US strictly enforces a ‘three strikes’ policy, meaning that if a particular violator accumulates three tickets, his or her parking privileges will be swiftly revoked.
The removal of parking privileges has also been used as a bargaining chip against Russian diplomats in recent times.