Putin Personally Delivers Steven Seagal's New Passport

New Russian citizen Steven Seagal received his passport from none other than Vladimir Putin himself during a ceremony Friday, the Washington Post reports. The Under Siege 2 star accepted the passport with an "Aikido-inspired bow." "I want to congratulate you and express the hope that this is another, albeit small, gesture and it might be a sign of the gradual normalization of relations between our countries," Reuters quotes Putin as saying to Seagal. The action star replied that he was "honored to be here." Seagal, whose grandmother was born in Russia, has visited the country for years and his movies remain popular there. He once called Putin "one of the greatest world leaders—if not the greatest world leader—alive today." (More Steven Seagal stories.)