Here Are Some Uncomfortable Photos of Putin Trying to Hold a Puppy

Vladimir Putin loves many things—judo, Steven Seagal, exercising in lakes, amusement parks where children can play with grenade launchers—but nothing touches his Kremlin heart quite like cuddly puppy dogs. The guy has a bunch of pet doggos who he wrestles and periodically uses to intimidate foreign leaders, as one does.

On Wednesday, Putin met with Turkmenistan's president, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, and, knowing that the guy is nuts for pooches, Berdimuhamedov brought him the perfect belated birthday gift: a cute-ass Turkmen puppy.

He pulled the puppy out of its cage, lofted it up like Simba for a photo op, and then handed it off to Putin, where things got a little weird. Behold:

Why is Putin holding the dog in his arms and clutching its hind legs like that? Has he ever actually held a puppy before? Is he making it dance around on the floor or something? How can one man make holding an adorable puppy seem so uncomfortable?