Why did Steven Seagal persistently seek Russian citizenship? That's why Steven Seagal took Russian citizenship! Unbelievable, but it is a fact! Seagal wants to get Russian citizenship

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree granting Russian citizenship to American actor Steven Seagal. This was reported by the press service of the Kremlin.

"In accordance with paragraph "a" of Article 89 of the Constitution Russian Federation I decide: to accept the citizenship of the Russian Federation Steven Frederick Seagal, who was born on April 10, 1952 in the United States of America,” the document says.

Seagal in recent times visited Russia quite often. In September he visited Kamchatka and Sakhalin. Then he spoke about his sympathy for our country, noting that Russia has a rich culture. Even then, the actor did not rule out receiving Russian citizenship soon, explaining that he would very much like to “spend several months a year with his friends in Russia, with people who love and wait for me here.” Seagal also talked about the fact that his paternal grandfather came from one of the Buddhist regions of Russia.

Commenting on the motives for granting Russian citizenship to Seagal, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the decision was made after repeated requests from the actor.

“It was his wish. He quite persistently and for a long time applied for citizenship, ”Peskov explained, noting that Seagal never hid his warm feelings for Russia. “At the same time, he is a well-known actor, which gave grounds for his admission to the citizenship of the Russian Federation,” the presidential press secretary noted.

In turn, Seagal thanked Putin for the opportunity to become a Russian.

“I have always felt that the US and Russia should be best friends and allies. Despite the unsuccessful propaganda that is going on around us, I still adhere to this idea and am ready to work tirelessly to achieve this goal. I am extremely grateful for this opportunity,” the actor said in a statement, relayed through his agent Anar Reyband.

Seagal explained his “great respect and love” for Russia with his roots.

“My dad was Russian, his family is mostly from Vladivostok. At the same time, my family is from Siberia, St. Petersburg and even from Belarus. I have a huge number of friends and relatives in Russia and former Soviet republics. I have the greatest respect and love for Russia. As well as to my home country,” Seagal said in a statement.

President Vladimir Putin signed a decree granting Russian citizenship to American actor Steven Seagal. The document was published on the Kremlin website.

Explaining motives decision, Peskov noted that Seagal "is known for his warm feelings towards our country, which he never hid." "At the same time, he is a well-known actor, which gave grounds for his admission to the citizenship of the Russian Federation," the presidential press secretary explained.

The Western press has long called Seagal a friend of Putin. In June 2013, at the G8 summit, the President of the Russian Federation, at a personal meeting with his American counterpart Barack Obama, proposed to appoint Steven Seagal the honorary consul of Russia in California and Arizona, but the American side did not support the proposal. Russian Ambassador to the United States Sergei Kislyak several times raised the issue of appointing Seagal to the US State Department to no avail.

Steven Seagal has repeatedly visited Russia - he visited Moscow, Kalmykia, Beslan, Izhevsk, Sevastopol and other cities.

It is noteworthy that the 64-year-old actor can not decide on his roots. So, recently, during a visit to Kyrgyzstan, Seagal told reporters that his ancestors were from Buryatia. According to Seagal, his father was a Buryat and his mother an Indian.

Prior to this, the artist, whose wife is from Mongolia, has repeatedly declared his Mongolian roots. He named the area where his ancestors came from - the Russian city of Kyakhta, located near the Mongolian border. In an interview with REN TV on Thursday, Seagal said that his father's family is from Vladivostok, and he has many friends throughout Russia.

In 2014, Steven Seagal, in an address to the President of Russia, also admitted his Russian roots. During the recent visit of the actor to Minsk, it turned out that he also has Belarusian roots.

Steven Seagal is an actor, producer, screenwriter, film director, musician and martial artist. Played roles in dozens of films. However, among the awards and nominations awarded to him - only "Golden Raspberries".

In 1995, Seagal received the Golden Raspberry Award in the Worst Director category and two nominations in the Worst Film and Worst Actor categories (Film In Mortal Peril). In 1997, followed by a nomination for the award "Golden Raspberry" in the category "Worst Supporting Actor" ("Ordered to destroy"). 1998 brought him four nominations for the Golden Raspberry Award in the categories Worst Film, Worst Actor, Worst Couple, Worst Song (Fire from Hell). In 2003, Seagal received a nomination for the Golden Raspberry Award in the Worst Actor category ("Neither Alive nor Dead").

Recall that earlier Russian citizenship was received by such world celebrities as French actor Gerard Depardieu and American boxer Roy Jones.

The press service of the Kremlin reports. The corresponding decree on admission of Seagal to the citizenship of the Russian Federation in accordance with paragraph "a" of Article 89 of the Constitution of the country was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Seagal has been practicing martial arts since the age of seven and lived for about 20 years in Japan, where he trained with aikido teachers and taught himself. The actor is the owner of the seventh dan in this kind of oriental arts. In the cinema, he is known mainly for his participation in action films. He has about 50 films to his credit, including Neither Alive nor Dead, Ultimate Depth, Today You Die, and Machete.

Biography

Steven Frederick Segal was born April 10, 1952 in Lansing, Michigan, USA. His father is a math teacher Samuel Steven Seagal- Jew; mother, Patricia Segal, nee Duffy - Irish.

His paternal grandfather and grandmother Nathan Siegelman and Dora Goldstein came to America as children from St. Petersburg, subsequently shortened and Americanized the surname from Sigelman to Segal.

Steven is the second child in the family, he has an older and two younger sisters.

In 1957 the family moved to Fullerton, California. From the age of seven, Stephen began to practice karate. As a teenager, he met an aikido master, Shihan. Kyoshi Isisaki and soon became the best student of Isisaki and participated with him in many demonstration performances.

At the age of 17, he made the decision to move to Japan to study with the masters. In the very early 1970s, he met a Japanese woman named Miyako Fujitani who became the mother of his first two children: son of Kentaro and Ayako's daughters.

In the summer of 1974, Segal received 1st dan from Koichi Toheya.

In 1975, Seagal Sensei became the first American in the history of Japan to open here a place for meditation and spiritual practices Dojo (Osaka, Juso district). He named it "Tenshin", which means "Divine Will".

In 1982, he entered the film business for the first time. He was invited by the famous Japanese swordsman Onoha Ittoro on the set of the film "Challenge" as an expert in Japanese swordsmanship. Segal was asked to stage some sword fights.

In 1983, Seagal moved to the United States and began to popularize his school of martial arts in America.

In 1987, Steven Seagal demonstrated fighting skills for ten minutes in a film studio. This "show" turned out to be so bright that the leadership of Warner Brothers immediately decided to shoot Seagal in the film "Above the Law."

In 1994, he directed the film In Mortal Danger.

In 1998, Seagal joined Buddhism and decided to stop his acting career in films where there is death and violence. For three years, the artist dropped out of media life, but in 2000 he returned to the cinema.

In 2001 Julius Nasso, who previously partnered with Stephen in the film business, sued the actor for $60 million for breaching contracts. Seagal filed a counterclaim, indicating that a certain criminal structure extorted $150,000 from him for each film.

In 2001, he starred in the films Through Wounds and Clockwork. For the next eight years, Steven Seagal starred in films that did not appear on wide screens, but remained in video rental.

In 2010, Seagal played a relatively small, but very interesting and unexpected role in the film "Machete" by the famous directed by Robert Rodriguez.

Since 2010, he began to train Brazilian fighters.

In June 2013 at the G8 summit Russian President Vladimir Putin in a personal meeting with US President Barack Obama proposed to appoint Steven Seagal as an honorary consul of Russia in California and Arizona, but the American side did not support this proposal.

Personal life

Was married four times. In Japan in the seventies, Seagal met a girl named Miyako Fujitani. She became the first wife of the actor and gave birth to his daughter and son, but family life did not last long, and the couple divorced in 1981.

Four years later, Segal again visited Japan and met there with Kelly LeBrock, an actress who also bore Seagal two children. In 1994, the couple divorced due to the fact that the actor fell in love with the nanny of his own children. Arissa Wolf who was only sixteen at the time.

Arissa became the third wife of Stephen, gave birth to his daughter and son.

The fourth wife of the actor was a dancer Erdentua Batsuk from Mongolia. couple educate son of Kunzang.

Awards and nominations

1995 - Golden Raspberry Award in the Worst Director category, 2 nominations in the Worst Film and Worst Actor categories (In Mortal Danger)

1997 - nomination for the Golden Raspberry Award in the category "Worst Supporting Actor" ("Ordered to Destroy")

1998 - 4 nominations for the Golden Raspberry Award in the categories Worst Film, Worst Actor, Worst Couple, Worst Song (Fire from Hell)

1999 - PETA Humanitarian Award

2003 - nomination for the Golden Raspberry Award in the category "Worst Actor" ("Neither Alive nor Dead")

Filmography

• Exhaustion (2017)
• Code of Honor (2016)
• Barrel End (2016)
• Insider in Asia (2016)
• Sniper: Special Ops (2016)
• Perfect Weapon (2016)
• Double Play (2014)
• Cyborg Rise (2014)
• Guitar Man (2014)
• Good man (2014)
• Cyborg Rise (2013)
• Punishment Squad (2013)
• Maximum term (2012)
• Like water (2011)
• Crossroads of death (TV-series (from 2010 year))
• Born to Win (2010)
• Machete (2010)
• A dangerous person (2009)
• Guardian (2009)
• Mankind's Last Hope (2009)
• Deathstroke (2008)
• Onion News (2008)
• Card Debt (2008)
• Find the Killer (2007)
• Black Thunder (2007)
• Shock Group (2006)
• Shadows of the Past (2006)
• Mercenaries (2006)
• Foreigner 2: Black Dawn (2005)
• Today You Die (2005)
• Ultimate Depth (2005)
• Shadow of the Yakuza (2005)
• Out of Reach (2004)
• Cell King (2004)
• Beast Hunt (2003)
• Words of my true teacher (2003)
• In the name of revenge (2003)
• Foreigner (2003)
• Jackie Chan: Fast, funny and furious (2002)
• Neither Alive nor Dead (2002)
• The Art of Combat (2002)
• Who is Alan Smitty? (2002)
• Clockwork (2001)
• The Inimitable Bruce Lee (2001)
• Through Wounds (2001)
• Get Bruce (1999)
• Patriot (1998)
• Comedy Lab (TV-series (from 1998 year))
• The exciting city of sin (TV-series (from 1998 year))
• Happy Birthday Elizabeth: A Celebration of Life (1997)
• Hellfire (1997)
• Lightning (1996)
• Ordered to Destroy (1996)
• Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (1995)
• Deadly Danger Zone (1994)
• Great Cops (1992)
• Under siege (1992)
• In the name of justice (1991)
• Marked for Death (1990)
• Death in spite of (1990)
• Celebrity Guide (1990)
• Above the Law (1988)

Became a citizen of Russia. The corresponding decree was published on Thursday on the Kremlin website.

“In accordance with paragraph “a” of Article 89 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, I decide: to accept the citizenship of the Russian Federation Steven Frederick Seagal, who was born on April 10, 1952 in the United States of America,” reads the decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Presidential spokesman Dmitry explained that the actor had been striving for this for a long time and quite persistently. “Segal is known for his rather warm feelings towards our country, he never hid it. At the same time, he is a fairly well-known actor, which gave grounds for his admission to the citizenship of the Russian Federation, ”added Peskov.

2016 turned out to be very eventful for the actor: this year he should release 10 (!) Films with such telling titles as "Chinese Salesman" and "The End of the Barrel". However, this does not prevent him from traveling all over the post-Soviet space and making acquaintances with the leaders of countries former USSR. At the beginning of the year, Seagal received another citizenship - Serbian, "to move Hollywood to Serbia." A little earlier, he met with the President of Belarus (this visit was remembered by the fact that the Belarusian President gave the actor a taste grown in his garden).

The actor announced his intention to become a Russian in September at the Sakhalin festival "Edge of the World". “I think Russian citizenship is somewhere on the horizon. I would really like to spend several months of the year with my friends in Russia, with people who love me here and are waiting for me, ”said the actor. According to the actor, he likes the rich culture in Russia. Seagal also noted Sakhalin's potential for doing business and the advantageous location of the island, which is located next to Japan.