• Newsfeed

23 Pictures That Prove Vladimir Putin Thinks He’s an Action Figure

President Vladimir Putin participates in a gala ice hockey match between Russian amateur players and ice hockey stars during the Night Hockey league tournament in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Krasnodar region, Russia, May 10, 2014.
President Vladimir Putin participates in a gala ice hockey match between Russian amateur players and ice hockey stars during the Night Hockey league tournament in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Krasnodar region, Russia, May 10, 2014.Alexey Druginyn—Ria Novosti/EPA
Russia's President Vladimir Putin is seen through the glass of C-Explorer 5 submersible after a dive in the Baltic Sea
Russia's President Vladimir Putin submerges on board a C-Explorer 5 submersible to explore the sunken Russian Imperial Navy fregate Oleg, in the Gulf of Finland, July 15, 2013.Alexei Nikolsly—ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis
RUSSIA-PUTIN-VACATION
President Vladimir Putin holding a huge pike fish, after he caught it in the Tyva region on July 20, 2013 during his vacation.Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/ Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Putin carries artifacts he recovered whilst diving at an archaeological site off the Taman peninsular
Putin carries artifacts he recovered whilst diving at an archaeological site off the Taman peninsular in southern Russia, Aug. 10, 2011. Alexsey Druginyn/Pool—Ria Novosti/Reuters
Russian Prime Minister Putin prepares to dive at an archaeological site off the Taman peninsular
Putin, center, scuba diving at the archaeological site, Aug. 10, 2011.Alexsey Druginyn/Pool—RIA Novosti/Reuters
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ho
As pro-Kremlin youth activists look on, Putin attempts to bend a pan during his visit to a summer camp run by the Nashi youth group at Lake Seliger in the central Tver region of Russia, Aug. 1, 2011. Alexei Nikolsky—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin sc
Putin scales a climbing wall during his visit to the summer camp, located 248 miles north of Moscow, Aug. 1, 2011.Mikhail Metzel—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin (L
Putin, left, prepares to arm wrestle during his Nashi camp visit, Aug. 1, 2011.Mikhail Metzel—AFP/Getty Images
Vladimir Putin
Then Prime Minister Putin rides a horse in the foothills of Karatash, near the capital of the Khakassia region in Siberia, Feb. 25, 2010. Alexei Druzhinin/Pool—RIA Novosti/AP
Vladimir Putin
Putin snowmobiles in Krasnaya Polyana near the Black Sea resort of Sochi, southern Russia, Jan. 3, 2010. Alexei Druzhinin/Pool—RIA Novosti/AP
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin dr
During a trip to Siberia, Putin, then 56, posed for a series of photographs showing off a variety of manly skills. Here, he pilots a motorboat in the waters outside Kyzyl, Aug. 3, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ri
Russian commentators noted that the photographs evoked associations with the mythic heroes of Russia, like the many horsemen who once rode the Russian steppe, defending it from foreign invaders, Aug. 3, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin fi
Putin hooked at least one fish from this perch, Aug. 3, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin sw
Putin prides himself on staying in peak physical condition, Aug. 3, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin po
In the Russian press, this photo drew comparisons to Nightingale the Robber, a popular Russian folk character who lives in a nest and has mystical powers, Aug. 3, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir PutinAlexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin lo
The photographs were taken in the same region where Putin vacationed with Prince Albert II of Monaco in 2007. During that trip, he was photographed shooting a tiger with a tranquilizer dart, Aug. 3, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin (C
Putin's choice of a rustic vacation resonated with many Russians, who tend to be suspicious and resentful of the moneyed élite, Aug. 3, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin (
Earlier in the trip, Putin visited the Architecture and Ethnography Museum in Irkutsk, where he worked with a pair of blacksmiths, Aug. 1, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Russia's Prime Minister Putin strokes a Beluga whale named Dasha as he visits Chkalov island, 700 kilometres (440 miles) northeast of the city of Khabarovsk
Putin strokes a beluga whale named Dasha at a conservation facility in Khabarovsk, July 31, 2009. Alexei Nikolsky—RIA Novosti/Reuters
Russia's Prime Minister Putin attaches a satellite tracking tag to a Beluga whale named Dasha as he visits Chkalov island
Dasha is fitted with a satellite tracking device, courtesy of the Prime Minister, July 31, 2009. Alexei Nikolsky—RIA Novosti/Reuters
Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin c
At majestic Lake Baikal, Putin descended 4,500 ft. (almost 1,400 m) to the bottom, Aug. 1, 2009. Alexey Druzhinin—AFP/Getty Images
Vladimir Putin
The ostensible purpose of the four-hour underwater trip was to inspect crystals containing natural gas, Aug. 1, 2009. RIA Novosti/AP

More Must-Reads From TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com