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By Andrew Stanton
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Russian President Vladimir Putin's gifts to his allies sparked a barrage of jokes and comparisons to the Lord of the Rings series.
Putin, who has faced rebuke from the West over his unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, gifted rings to the leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a coalition of former Soviet republics, in St. Petersburg on Monday, according to a report from The Moscow Times, an independent Russian news outlet.
During the summit, in which Putin reaffirmed cooperation between the member states despite some tensions, the Russian president gave the leaders a gold ring engraved with New Year's greetings, according to the Times.
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Of the leaders in attendance, only Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko—one of Putin's most vocal supporters—put the ring on, the Timesreported.
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Images of the rings quickly spread across social media, where some Putin critics mocked the gift with comparisons to the book and movie franchise The Lord of the Rings, penned by author J. R. R. Tolkien.
"Putin got tired of being the Hitler of the 21st century and decided to play Lord of the Rings and become a 'mighty Sauron,'" tweeted Ukrainian politician Oleksiy Goncharenko. "He presented the participants of the informal summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States with rings with the symbol of the 'commonwealth.'"
Goncharenko compared Putin to the Lord of the Rings antagonist Sauron, who in the novel created a Ruling Ring to help extend his power by giving him control of the other Rings of Power, which, in the Putin comparison, would be the other former Soviet republics.
Others drew similar comparisons between Putin's gift and The Lord of the Rings.
"Putin at the CIS summit gave out rings to dictators as a gift. Lord of the Rings in Mordor," tweeted lawyer Leila Nazgul Seiitbek.
Ukrainian newspaper The Kyiv Post also poked fun at Putin's gift, tweeting: "The Lord of the Rings: Putin edition. The Russian dictator gifted 8 rings to the leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States. One he saved for himself."
Putin Acknowledges Frayed Relations Amid Ukraine War
Russia, which enjoys substantial political capital in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, has long dominated relations among ex-Soviet states. But amid the Ukraine war, there have been signs of his power slipping. For instance, Armenia, a CIS member, earlier in December refused to take part in Russian-brokered peace talks with Azerbaijan.
Abdulaziz Komilov, the former prime minister of Uzbekistan, publicly backed Ukraine's sovereignty following the invasion but later stepped down from his leadership position, according to Radio Free Europe.
Putin acknowledged these tensions during the summit.
"The main thing, however, is that we are ready and will cooperate. And even if any problematic issues arise, we strive to solve them ourselves, together, jointly, providing each other with comradely assistance and mediation," he said, according to the Times.
Newsweek reached out to Russia's Foreign Affairs Ministry for comment.
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