‘Peacemaker’ Putin’s portrait flies on Manhattan Bridge, creates a stir among New Yorkers

A large banner of Vladimir Putin with the slogan “Peacemaker” against the backdrop of Russian and Syrian flags appeared on Manhattan Bridge. What this means or why it happened is as good as anyone’s guess, but it certainly grabbed some attention.

Witnesses reported seeing two men unfurl a large banner on Manhattan Bridge on Thursday afternoon. The NYPD received 911 calls regarding the 20-by-30-foot banner that was hanging on the Brooklyn side of the bridge and removed it after it was hung for a little over an hour, the New York Post reported. 

The ambiguous message left New Yorkers wondering what it could mean, some assumed that it was a political move from Trump’s campaign.

However, the actual description of the two men seen unfurling the banner makes it seem less like a stealthy display of power and more like a poorly executed marketing campaign for a clothing company.

"It took them a while. They were kind of fumbling with it. They definitely were lacking in stage management experience,” a DUMBO office worker told the Gothamist. Based on that comment, the office worker probably had stage management experience.

A theory going around connects the banner to Putin Peacemaker merchandise that appeared in a pop-up shop in 2014. Putin Peacemaker merchandise is the brainchild of Julius Kacinskis, an American-born man with Russian and Lithuanian heritage according to the Atlantic. “We are just expressing an idea of the positive of Putin," he told the Atlantic. 

The flag was removed by cops within an hour.