After being mentioned in this week's vice presidential debate, Russian president Vladimir Putin has made an appearance in New York City—sort of. On Thursday afternoon, a mysterious banner with a photo of Putin was hung on the Manhattan Bridge. Could the banner be Leonardo DiCaprio making a case to play Putin (and possibly win his second Oscar)? Could it be Donald Trump taking cues from Drake (who took out billboards for Rihanna) to continue to praise the Russian leader?
Photos and video of the banner were captured before police took it down. The banner featured a photo of Putin with the Russian flag in the background and the word "peacemaker" at the bottom.
Witnesses in a nearby office told the New York Post they saw two men put the banner up at around 1:45 p.m. A spokesperson for the New York Police Department told the paper that a call was made to police regarding the banner at 2:30 p.m. Police were able to take down the approximately 20 foot by 30 foot banner by 2:55 p.m. No information about what motivated the men to hang the banner has been released.
Donald Trump has famously spoken positively of Putin, even saying Putin has "much better leadership qualities" than President Barack Obama. Likewise, Putin has said good things about Trump, calling him “bright” and “talented.”
