Melania Trump‘s nude pics have been aired on primetime Russian TV after Donald Trump‘s election victory, sparking outrage.
Russia-1 network broadcast the images from the former First Lady’s British GQ shoot in 2000 on its 60 Minutes programme.
Russian Media Monitor creator Julia Davis shared a clip of the show on X, with presenter Yevgeny Popov explaining how Mrs Trump will be preparing to return to the White House.
The clip cuts to an image of Mrs Trump from the risqué shoot and Popov tells viewers: “Here’s how Melania looked in the year 2000.”
He then explains images from the shoot, including of Mrs Trump reclining on top of furs wearing a negligee.
The photos were taken on board Mr Trump’s Boeing 727, according to The Sun, which first reported the clip.
As Popov continues to describe the pics, his co-presenter and wife, Olga Skabeeva, can barely contain herself.
The news item was met with fury on social media, with one X-user quoted by the same publication as saying: “Russia is laughing at us.”
Another said: “Putin [is] flexing his power over Trump and by extension our country.”
Mrs Trump has defended her nude modelling, arguing that she stands “proudly” by it. In a video posted on X she said: “Are we no longer able to appreciate the beauty of the human body?
“Throughout history, master artists have revered the human shape, evoking profound emotions and admiration.
“We should honour our bodies and embrace the timeless tradition of using art as a powerful means of self expression.”
Mr and Mrs Trump met in 1998 at a New York Fashion Week party. The United States’ next First Lady told Harper’s Bazaar in 2016 that she was attracted to the billionaire businessman’s “amazing sense of vitality”.
The couple married in Palm Beach, Florida, in January 2005, going on to have a son together, Barron Trump.