tovaris
January 12th, 2016, 06:20 PM
It didn't take much for the Republic of Serbia to gain a new son, and he's a dangerous man.
As noted by Siobhán O'Grady in an article for ForeignPolicy.com, Serbian state media reports that actor Steven Seagal was granted Serbian citizenship after suggesting he would possibly open an Aikido school in the country. The foreigner had made various trips to the country (which is why for many here in the U.S. he has been largely out of reach) and was even asked by the Serbian government to train their police force in the art of Aikido; presumably in hopes of making them hard to kill. Who better to provide guidance to law enforcement on hand to hand combat and urban justice than an actual sheriff and a perfect weapon?
While we at BE aren't very well-versed in the ins and outs of what is required for one to be a Serbian citizen or how long it takes, it appears some special treatment may be at play here and that this could have been an executive decision. It is presumed that the honor was received with a degree of gratitude and maximum conviction by the 63-year-old actor.
A degree of praise was heaped upon the actor and accomplished Aikido master by none other than Sinisa Mali mayor of Belgrade, which is the capital of Serbia and its largest city:
'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,' Mali said.
Seagal now joins a growing list of Americans in combat sports (or at least tangentially related to them) obtaining foreign citizenship boxer Roy Jones Jr obtained Russian citizenship in recent months. Jones' request for citizenship was signed by decree by Russian president Vladimir Putin himself, while MMA veteran Jeff Monson requested Russian citizenship as well.
Source: http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2016/1/12/10752726/steven-seagal-is-now-a-serbian-citizen-serbia-aikido-rubes-school
As noted by Siobhán O'Grady in an article for ForeignPolicy.com, Serbian state media reports that actor Steven Seagal was granted Serbian citizenship after suggesting he would possibly open an Aikido school in the country. The foreigner had made various trips to the country (which is why for many here in the U.S. he has been largely out of reach) and was even asked by the Serbian government to train their police force in the art of Aikido; presumably in hopes of making them hard to kill. Who better to provide guidance to law enforcement on hand to hand combat and urban justice than an actual sheriff and a perfect weapon?
While we at BE aren't very well-versed in the ins and outs of what is required for one to be a Serbian citizen or how long it takes, it appears some special treatment may be at play here and that this could have been an executive decision. It is presumed that the honor was received with a degree of gratitude and maximum conviction by the 63-year-old actor.
A degree of praise was heaped upon the actor and accomplished Aikido master by none other than Sinisa Mali mayor of Belgrade, which is the capital of Serbia and its largest city:
'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,' Mali said.
Seagal now joins a growing list of Americans in combat sports (or at least tangentially related to them) obtaining foreign citizenship boxer Roy Jones Jr obtained Russian citizenship in recent months. Jones' request for citizenship was signed by decree by Russian president Vladimir Putin himself, while MMA veteran Jeff Monson requested Russian citizenship as well.
Source: http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2016/1/12/10752726/steven-seagal-is-now-a-serbian-citizen-serbia-aikido-rubes-school