Putin Welcomes Gift Leopard From Iran
EmailABC's Alexander Marquardt reports from Moscow: The leopard growled, flashed its teeth and lunged at the fence of its new enclosure at a national park in Russia’s near the southern city of Sochi. Standing on the other side of the fence was Russian prime minister, and animal lover, Vladimir Putin, who smiled broadly. The rare Persian leopard is one of two that Iran recently gifted to Russia in exchange for two Amur, or Siberian, Tigers. Putin was on hand to open an enclosure for Russia’s new cats, the second of which was too ill to come out, according to Russia Today. Russia hopes to start a breeding program to revive the Persian Leopard population in the Caucasus region which has largely disappeared because of poaching and a shrinking habitat. At the same time, Iran is looking to re-introduce Amur tigers to the Islamic Republic, decades after they became extinct in the country. "Russian zoologists will manage the tigers' habitat here [in Iran] for five years and we will do the same for our leopards there," said the head of Iran’s environmental body, Mohammad Javad Mohammadizadeh, last month according to Agence-France Presse. Tough guy Putin is an unlikely environmentalist but has spearheaded efforts to protect Russia’s endangered tigers, famously shooting one on a monitoring trip in 2008 with a tranquilizer dart when it escaped. Russian TV later claimed he saved the visiting camera crew from a mauling. Last week Russia’s resident action man was up in the Arctic, fitting a massive sedated polar bear with an electronic collar and declaring, “he’s the real master of the Arctic.”
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This is all very disgraceful and sad. Like this beautiful animal deserves to be in this dark musty cage. My heart breaks for this poor thing.
Posted by: h.barclay | May 3, 2010, 10:56 am 10:56 am
The tragic metaphor is utterly lost on the captures!
Iran herself is like that majestic Persian leopard captured by the terrorist islamist occupiers and gifted and held captive by the russian bane of Iranian people.
Posted by: fish story | May 3, 2010, 11:01 am 11:01 am
Did you people complaining about captured animals not read the article? The animal is in a zoo where they are trying to breed the animals and revive a near-extinct population. The animals were traded for siberian tigers given to Iran for the same purpose.
How do you expect the population to be rebuilt if not by putting a few of them in cages? Pull your head out!
Posted by: Andrew | May 3, 2010, 11:13 am 11:13 am
Revelation 13:2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
Posted by: yep | May 3, 2010, 11:20 am 11:20 am
Rwhats the problem? Russia gave Iran the tiger, Iran gave Russia the leapord and they both are giving the US the snake.
Posted by: Warloch | May 3, 2010, 11:31 am 11:31 am
This animal, like the Russian people, and people all over the world, suffer under the tyrannical and oppressive rule of Oligarchs and Tyrants like Putin, Obama, Jintao, Chavez, Ahmedeenajad, Castro, Mugabe. Jong-Il, Bashir, Niyazof…
Posted by: Zed | May 3, 2010, 11:34 am 11:34 am
a very symbolic gift-gesture by Iran.
Though I feel for the leopard.
Posted by: al | May 3, 2010, 12:02 pm 12:02 pm
Duplicitous Iranians…on one hand they give Putin a leopard..on the other give aid and supplies to the Chechens who blow up his subways.
Posted by: teebubba | May 3, 2010, 12:10 pm 12:10 pm
Beautiful animal. I hope the breeding program is successful these animals should live free and protected.
-Dhulfqar
Posted by: Dhulfiqar | May 3, 2010, 12:45 pm 12:45 pm
Hmmm… I wonder what animal would be appropriate to give to Obama?
Posted by: Bubba | May 3, 2010, 12:52 pm 12:52 pm
Putin always appears to be overcompensating for something.
Posted by: USA | May 3, 2010, 12:56 pm 12:56 pm
That lucky leopard is about to get fat on a steady diet of Russian journalists.
Posted by: Phil Silvers' Ghost | May 3, 2010, 1:31 pm 1:31 pm
That Putin, the most popular guy on the campus of tyrannical dictators. I’ll bet Obama is extremely jealous.
Posted by: BABS | May 3, 2010, 1:48 pm 1:48 pm
The entire world should be ashamed of what they have and still are doing everyday to our animal kingdom to destroy it and them for greed.
Posted by: mike | May 3, 2010, 1:54 pm 1:54 pm
I am an expert at body language. As I observe Mr. Putin in the photo, gazing at the big cat, his body language unmistakingly says, “What in God’s name am I going to do with this? The Moscow Zoo has just acquired a new big cat”. It is so obvious that anyone can pick up on it.
Posted by: Dr Freud | May 3, 2010, 2:16 pm 2:16 pm
Politics aside, I support their efforts to conserve and attempt to bring these two rare big cats back from the brink of extinction.
Posted by: SteveB | May 3, 2010, 2:42 pm 2:42 pm
WHAT’S THAT SAYING BIRD’S OF A FEATHER……STICK TOGETHER
Posted by: newmexico roots | May 3, 2010, 2:49 pm 2:49 pm
Maybe there’s more to the story than meets the eye. Are Iran and Russia teaming up in more ways than one?
Interesting.
Do you really think Putin and Admandinejad are that concerned about animals? They weren’t friends before. Why now?
Posted by: ddg | May 3, 2010, 3:07 pm 3:07 pm
this is this not a gift, but rather an exchange.
Posted by: segestan | May 3, 2010, 3:07 pm 3:07 pm
They do realize that they are different species right? The tigers extinct from the middle east are not the same tigers being brought from Russia, and vice versa. It is equivilent to taking some tigers from Africa and trading them to Asia. Might work, but usually there are unforeseen complications.
Posted by: Eric | May 3, 2010, 3:12 pm 3:12 pm
Amazing that such innocent program like saving wind animals gets such political/geopolitical motivated posts. For a long time we were exposed to
Brain-washing propaganda machine and have a double-standard mentality.
Poor Putin: Damn if you do and damn if you don’t.
Posted by: Kizhe | May 3, 2010, 3:25 pm 3:25 pm
Amazing that such innocent program like saving wind animals gets such political/geopolitical motivated posts. For a long time we were exposed to brain-washing propaganda machine and have a double-standard mentality.
Poor Putin: Damn if you do and damn if you don’t.
Posted by: Kizhe | May 3, 2010, 3:32 pm 3:32 pm
I hope it bites him on his Russian a$$
Posted by: Frank | May 3, 2010, 3:38 pm 3:38 pm
Looks like the leopard is living as well as the Russian people – poor animals!
Posted by: dam | May 3, 2010, 4:08 pm 4:08 pm
Andrew: You start by not killing them in the first place. Zoo’s are not the answer to saving endangered species. Starts with you and me brother.
Posted by: greg | May 3, 2010, 5:25 pm 5:25 pm
There are no Tigers in Africa. So, no, it probably wouldn’t work out.
Posted by: mojo | May 3, 2010, 5:27 pm 5:27 pm
The tiger looks lost in his cage. It seems to me that he cannot run free any-more. I dislike the Putin. He says one thing and then does something else.
Posted by: Andrea Visconti | May 3, 2010, 5:49 pm 5:49 pm
They don’t have Tigers in Africa. Only Asia.
I’m sure they know they are different species and such. Don’t think Iran is planning on letting tigers loose in Iran.
Posted by: kenberthaiume | May 3, 2010, 6:35 pm 6:35 pm
This is just another front by these two ridiculous countries…they’re placing centrifuges inside those animals and exchanging them with one another.
Posted by: scott | May 3, 2010, 7:03 pm 7:03 pm
Yeah Greg, you’re right…I’ll stop hunting Persian Leopards & Siberian Tigers if you stop hunting American Bald Eagles & other endangered species.
You make no sense, brother.
Posted by: scott | May 3, 2010, 7:09 pm 7:09 pm
We need a real tough guy as President of USA too. Ya gotta like Putin aside from the kgb,nationleaderillumanatiAmericans hater stuff. Bush did and I do to, master showman and awesome line about the Artic – but not true, NATO, Canada & USA run things baby whattya gonna do about it?
Posted by: jamesleeland | May 3, 2010, 7:12 pm 7:12 pm
National Enquirer headline: “PUTIN CAUGHT AT CATHOUSE!”
Posted by: noseitall2 | May 3, 2010, 7:32 pm 7:32 pm
Set this kitty free in beautiful Kamchatka.
Posted by: Ben | May 3, 2010, 9:13 pm 9:13 pm
h barclay….you’re a goof.
Posted by: bobby | May 3, 2010, 10:29 pm 10:29 pm
@Eric: Actually, acording to the article they ARE the same species, both ways.
Posted by: me | May 3, 2010, 11:27 pm 11:27 pm
OK, no tigers in Africa, so thanks for the ecology lesson. The point remains. The Iranians want to reintroduce a non-native species back into the environment. At least that is what the article said. Might not turn out how they plan.
Posted by: Eric | May 3, 2010, 11:32 pm 11:32 pm
That is no snow leopard- your link is wrong. ABC continues to perpetuate this mistake. It is probably a Panthera pardus saxicolor. And your identification of Putin as an environmentalist is equally off base. On his watch, the wildlife of Russia has been systematically destroyed.
Posted by: Kathleen | May 4, 2010, 12:38 am 12:38 am
All of the Greatest world leaders had a great caring for animals of the world. In this light, he will be known as a great world leader for all the great things he has done and will do.
Thank you for everything Mr. Putin.
You are my hero.
:)
Posted by: dean | May 4, 2010, 1:37 am 1:37 am
what a beautiful leopord. we should all hope that the breeding program undertaken by both iran and russia is successful–otherwise, all of the beautiful and rare animals in this world will one day be extinct with a afew pictures to show that they once were here on this planet– before we humans destroyed their habitat and their god created presence.
Posted by: fred | May 4, 2010, 2:21 am 2:21 am
@Eric Tigers are not native to Africa. Leopards and tigers are both found however in Russia and the Middle East (although tigers are now extinct throughout the Middle East).
Posted by: Steve | May 4, 2010, 3:27 am 3:27 am
Eric. There are no tigers in Africa.
Posted by: Traveler1111 | May 4, 2010, 4:48 am 4:48 am
The local zoo does this all the time. It has been very successful (now for the second time around) with leopards and giraffes. So far the zoo also has a toddler orangutan.
I wonder if Putin already has the mate for this one. Nothing to be afraid of being a big cat lover, like I am. Exchanges happen in the US all the time, at state and at international level (best example, panda bears).
Posted by: conservativenexus | May 4, 2010, 7:03 am 7:03 am
Nevermind, the mate is already in Russia :D
Posted by: conservativenexus | May 4, 2010, 7:06 am 7:06 am
We should see Pooty-Poot sportin’ a nice leopard skin coat in his Fall fashion collection.
Posted by: good chinch | May 4, 2010, 8:08 am 8:08 am
Fishizzle: Dat’s some good chinch!
Posted by: good chinch | May 4, 2010, 8:13 am 8:13 am
That’s not likely to be all they’re exchanging. I’d believe oil for nukes. If so, then how long will it be before the Chechens “acquire” a nuke to use against the Russian motherland? Politics makes strange bedfellows, and chickens do “come home to roost”.
Posted by: NoMoreApologies | May 4, 2010, 8:46 am 8:46 am
Russia, as a nation, is never a friend of the USA. He always working to undermine the power, the national security of the USA by working closely with nations hostile to the US. The wall might be down the the WAR is not over yet.
Posted by: Henry | May 4, 2010, 8:56 am 8:56 am
there’s nothing wrong with this article. This is a good thing. These animals are endangered and their doing what they think is right to keep them from becoming extinct. Turning the babies of these cats loose in the future, well, I don’t know if they’ll survive after being brought up in a cage. Good intentions. Maybe they’ll eat Irans president. (I can’t spell his name).
Posted by: kenema | May 4, 2010, 10:10 am 10:10 am
How very, very sad. That BEAUTIFUL animal.
Posted by: sammy | May 4, 2010, 10:23 am 10:23 am
There are no tigers in Africa, and never have been. Tigers are indiginous to Asia.
Posted by: Richard | May 4, 2010, 10:27 am 10:27 am
Cool gifts from those guys. Unlike Obama who gives DVDs that wont play because they are the wrong region or an iPOD filled up with his own speeches. Classy!
Posted by: Ed | May 4, 2010, 10:37 am 10:37 am
What a nice gesture on the part of two totalitarians, exchanging endangered pets. I am sure that they got preapproval from PETA. If not, there will be nude celebrity chicks parading around in Tehran and Moscow next week, handing out salads to everyone.
Posted by: Ethicus | May 4, 2010, 11:57 am 11:57 am
There’s more to this story, I can guarantee you. Watch for future alliances between Iran and Russia.
Remember, even Hitler liked animals.
Posted by: ddg | May 4, 2010, 3:48 pm 3:48 pm
Putin “dammed” himself. He’s not a nice guy.
Posted by: ddg | May 4, 2010, 3:51 pm 3:51 pm