A video purportedly showing the Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syrian Bashar Hafez al-Assad mocking American President Donald Trump is making the Internet crack-up.
The video is from January 7 when Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad visited the Mariamite Cathedral of Damascus, one of the oldest Greek Orthodox churches in the capital, as part of a rare visit to Syria.
In the clipping, which was aired on Russian television, shows the two leaders joking about President Trump along with Greek Orthodox Patriarch John X of Antioch.
"If Trump arrives along this road, he will be a good man," Assad said, to which Putin laughed before replying, "He will change for the better."
After a brief pause, the Russian leader added, "Invite him, he will come." Assad laughed and responded, "I will tell him."
Assad was referring to the biblical story of Saul, a zealous Pharisee, who had made it his mission to persecute Christians. Saul, who later became Paul, was transformed on the road to Damascus after he encountered God.
The two leaders used the biblical incident to make fun of President Trump, who since his election in 2016 attacked Syria twice following allegations that Assad used chemical weapons.
Russian President Putin met Assad last week in Damascus at the operations center set up by the Russian forces.
Putin and Assad now have joined a long list of world leaders who were caught on tape making fun of the American president. Last year, during the NATO summit held in the UK, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron and Princess Anne of Britain were caught on video mocking President Trump.
