Video: Putin gives Peng Liyuan his coat at APEC

  • Breaking
  • 11/11/2014

By 3 News online staff

A small act of chivalry by Russian President Vladimir Putin has set tongues wagging at the opening banquet of the APEC summit in Beijing.

Video captured by China's state-run broadcaster CCTV showed Putin talking to Peng Liyuan, the wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

After a brief exchange, Putin stands up and wraps his tan coat around Peng's shoulders. But immediately upon sitting down, she shrugs it off into the hands of an attendant, who helps her put her own coat on instead.

The incident, which is perhaps best dubbed 'Coatgate', was noticed by CCTV's commentator who said: "Putin has just placed his coat around Peng Liyuan's body," Foreign Policy reports.

The video quickly spread through Chinese news websites and social media such as Weibo, but was removed by censors within hours.

Commentators have suggested that authorities may have seen the act by Putin, whose divorce from his wife Lyudmilla Putina was confirmed in April, as being just a little too forward for their liking.

The 'Coatgate' incident can be seen at 0:40 in the video above.

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    source: newshub archive