If you thought Vladimir Putin took the mantle as supreme Soviet action hero leader – meet Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov.
The president of the central Asian nation of Turkmenistan has gone full commando in a new video showing off his military prowess.
The video, shot in an outpost near the capital Ashgabat on Tuesday, shows Mr Berdymukhamedov in full combat gear, an assault rifle, ammo packs and sunglasses as a loyal group of soldiers watch on.
The president shoots at targets, then inspects the damage his shots have inflicted on the blue posts, before the group of soldiers applaud his efforts.
Mr Berdymukhamedov then grabs a pistol, poses for the cameras, and strikes at the posts again – two-handed, then one-handed.
That’s when the knife throwing begins.
Later the president appears to instruct his troops over bombing raids, before finishing off by personally signing one of the target posters, emblazoned with traces of his bullets.
A parody of the video posted on YouTube pokes fun at the president by mashing up the footage with clips and music from the 1985 Arnold Schwarzenegger flick Commando, in which Schwarzenegger suits up with a number of weapons.
But according to the country’s state news agency, the exercise was about the leader inspecting “the readiness of the armed forces”.
It praised Mr Berdymukhamedov for his “accuracy hitting the target” which indicated his “high-level military training”.
It also showed his “skillful handling of cold steel by precise throws”, the report said.
Mr Berdymukhamedov was elected to a third term in 2017.
Human Rights Watch considers Turkmenistan one of the world’s most repressive countries with an “abysmal” human rights record.
It has accused the government of denying freedom of association, expression, and religion and says the country is closed to independent scrutiny.
