Putin Presents Steven Seagal With Russian Passport

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with D-list Hollywood actor Steven Seagal on Friday to present him with a Russian passport. At the Kremlin ceremony held for the event, Putin said he hoped it would serve as a symbol of the U.S. and Russia mending ties after years of tension. As Seagal signed his new passport in front of Putin, the Russian president said, “I want to congratulate you and express the hope that this is another, albeit small, gesture and it might be a sign of the gradual normalization of relations between our countries.” Putin signed an order for Seagal’s passport earlier this month, and a Kremlin spokesman cited “warm feelings toward Russia” as the reason for the move. Seagal is not the first Western actor to be presented with a Russian passport. French actor Gerard Depardieu was presented with Russian citizenship and the keys to a Russian apartment by Putin in 2013.