In a classic case of life imitating art, movie star and Aikido expert Steven Seagal has been offered the job of training Serbian special police forces by Serbian officials.
Mayor of Belgrade Sinisa Mali said, “When you have such a famous star coming to Serbia, who loves our country and our people, our desire is to have him back again.” Seagal, staying for three days in Belgrade, met with Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic and president Tomislav Nikolic; Russian President Vladimir Putin and Vucic are staunch allies.
Seagal has praised Putin, saying in 2014, “I know him well enough to know that he is one of the greatest world leaders, if not the greatest world leader, alive today. He cares more about Russia than anybody I know. And he’s not afraid to get up and do what needs to be done.” The movie star was honored by the Brothers Karic Foundation for his humanitarian work, an award also won by Putin, who allowed the head of the Karic family, Bogoljub Karic, to gain asylum in Russia after fleeing Serbia after he was charged with corruption and embezzlement of millions of dollars in state funds.
“I know him well enough to know that he is one of the greatest world leaders, if not the greatest world leader, alive today.”
Steven Seagal on Vladimir Putin
Seagal, who seemingly has little political sensitivity, played a set of songs with his blues band in March 2014 at an international bikers’ event run by Russia’s “Night Wolves” biker gang in the Crimean city of Sevastopol; the same group was responsible for an event in August 2014 that featured dancers in black rising from a white sheet and forming a Swastika.