Depardieu announced his readiness to die for Russia

French actor Gerard Depardieu, who received Russian citizenship, declared his readiness to die for Russia. About this Depardieu said in an interview with the magazine Vanity Fair, an excerpt from which leads the French edition of Voici.

“I am ready to die for Russia, because the people here are strong; I do not want to die like a fool in present-day France, ”said Depardieu. At the same time, he noted that he had never felt himself a Frenchman and did not share the values ​​in which he had been brought up. “I do not believe in anything. Especially in myself. Sometimes at night in my bed I want to sleep forever, ”Depardieu added.

Earlier, Depardieu, at the Cannes Film Festival, admitted his love for Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also noted that he does not like war and is shocked by what is happening in Ukraine. “I was well acquainted with [former] President Viktor Yushchenko, I love Ukrainians very much, but the discussion of conflicts is not in my jurisdiction. (...) I do not like war, I do not like conflicts, because it leads to the death of people, ”the actor stressed.

In early January, 2013, the Depardieu was granted Russian citizenship. At a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi on January 5, he received a Russian passport.

The actor announced his decision renounce French citizenship in December 2012 of the year. This happened after the country's president, Francois Hollande, was about to introduce an 75-interest tax on annual income of over a million euros. Initially it was assumed that Depardieu would replace the French citizenship with the Belgian. Later it became known that the French authorities waived the luxury tax.