French actor Gerard Depardieu 'wants' to acquire Turkish citizenship

French film star Gerard Depardieu, holding Russian citizenship since Jan. 2013,  said he also wants to acquire Turkish citizenship, Ahvalnews.com reports, citing Turkish left-nationalist Aydınlık newspaper.

Depardieu said he also has Algerian citizenship, and he wants to be a Turkish citizen, as replying questions of Aydınlık newspaper in Pyongyang where he joined the 70th-anniversary celebrations of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Depardieu said he is planning to visit Turkey in October 2018 and he wants to meet Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Aydınlık wrote. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin granted citizenship to Gerard Depardieu 5 years ago, the French movie star whose decision to quit his homeland to avoid a tax hike prompted accusations of national betrayal.

Russia has a flat income tax rate of 13 per cent, compared to the 75 per cent on income over 1 million euros ($1.32 million) that the former President François Hollande wanted to levy in France.

The French actor is expected to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his stay in Pyongyang.