American actor Seagal celebrates Putin, stands with Russia

American actor Steven Seagal was in Moscow April 10 to stand with Russia “through thick and through thin”.

He said this during a lavish dinner to celebrate President Vladimir Putin’s birthday.

According to the Financial Times, Seagal delivered a speech at the function on April 10. He was surrounded by several Russian elites targeted by Western sanctions amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“Each and every one of you, you are my family and my friends. And I love all of you and we stand together, through thick and through thin,” Seagal said.

The American actor was granted a Russian passport in 2016 and was made Russia’s special envoy to the US in 2018.

The pair have been pictured together on a number of occasions, and are thought to have bonded over their mutual love of martial arts.

He once described Putin as “one of the greatest world leaders, if not the greatest world leader, alive today”, and in February said in an interview with Fox News Digital that propaganda from an “outside entity” pitted Russia and Ukraine against each other.

Russia has been fighting in Ukrain since late February in what Putin called a special military operation.

America and the EU have hounded down Putin’s cronies with sanctions, and launched economic warfare on Russia, all in defence of Ukraine.