Actor and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger strode onto the international political stage Thursday in the self-cast role of global peacemaker, telling told Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to back off and abandon his war in Ukraine.
“Ukraine did not start this war,” the Terminator star said in a direct message to the people of Russia and its leader.
“I’m speaking to you today because there are things going on in the world that are being kept from you, terrible things that you should know about,” he continued.
The Austrian-born former bodybuilding champion, whose film Red Heat was the first American movie filmed in Moscow’s Red Square, spoke of his affection for the Russian people and meeting his idol, Russian weightlifter Yuri Vlasov, when he was 14 years old.
“The strength and the heart of the Russian people have always inspired me,” he said. “That is why I hope that you will let me tell you the truth about the war in Ukraine.”
He then set out his call for an immediate cease-fire across a nine-minute message.
Watch the full message below:
This is not the first effort by the actor to enter the world of global political ambitions.
As Breitbart News reported, last year he scolded leaders who highlight the financial and societal burdens of combating climate change as “stupid or liars.”
In 2017 he called for a “grassroots revolution” to continue the battle against global warming after then President Donald Trump announced the United States would withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement.
The actor urged citizens and elected officials to “rise up” and save Planet Earth from Trump’s predations.
“One man cannot destroy our progress, one man can’t stop our clean energy revolution, one man can’t go back in time. Only I can do that,” Schwarzenegger said.
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