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As the real Zelensky took to the streets of the capital, wearing a bulletproof jacket in a video he released to dispel any notion he was fleeing — even as the United States warned him of threats to his life — the fake Zelensky soon realized he needed all the help he could get.
When you look exactly like the man leading a country during a war, life becomes even more strange, and fast. As Umid Isabaev, 41, started contemplating his own precarious position, he was offered help from two unusual figures: Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Not the real ones, of course, but by two men who earn a living impersonating them.
Many miles away, from a “secret location” in Asia that he would not disclose, “Howard X” — who has impersonated Kim since 2013 — was watching the news of bombs falling during Russia’s attempts to capture key Ukrainian cities. Howard spoke on condition his full name, age and whereabouts would not be disclosed, since he takes extra precautions to avoid detection by the dictator’s security forces. (He did tell The Washington Post he was “under 50” and “the nearest thing to the real Kim” that this reporter was likely ever to get.)
Howard was thinking about Isabaev, whom he had never met — but knew of, since they both starred in a 2020 documentary about political look-alikes on Russia 24 television. As Ukraine begged for foreign volunteers to help defeat Russia, Howard said he was “too fat to fight” — but knew he “could help” the fake Zelensky.
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On the other side of the social media message, Isabaev — who is just three years younger than the man he mimics — was surprised by the outreach from a stranger. “It was an unexpected proposal,” he said. “There is a war on, and I didn’t know what to do next.”
Howard enlisted the help of another friend, who goes by the stage name “Steve Poland.” His real name is Slawomir. He is globally known as “fake Putin” for being one of the most famous, if not the most famous, professional look-alike of the Russian president.
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Howard and Slawomir met in 2017, when the two starred in a commercial together for electronics business Wilson. The pair are seen in the video dancing enthusiastically alongside a Trump impersonator.
From his home in Poland, to which millions of Ukrainian refugees have fled, Slawomir — who spoke on the condition his last name would not be used due to security concerns — told The Post that it was his responsibility to stay in constant communication with the Zelensky impersonator, Isabaev, as he made the journey into Poland.
Isabaev, who lived in Russia for more than a decade before moving to Ukraine, said that while he was still in Kyiv during the war, both Russians and Ukrainians reached out to him offering to help. He didn’t know who he could trust. “[Isabaev] was followed all the time by Russian soldiers who wanted to take him to Moscow to spread propaganda negative for Ukraine,” Slawomir said.
Howard, who set up an official Facebook page for Isabaev as he took on a new role as the fake Zelensky’s manager and booker during the war, said the page was hacked within 24 hours. He said hackers posted an image of the letter Z — a pro-Russian symbol that emerged during the war.
The journey from Kyiv to Poland took Isabaev about a week. Isabaev passed through several military checkpoints before making it to safety March 12. Howard sent a car to pick him up and said he paid for Isabaev’s hotels.
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Another issue that complicated the great impersonator escape of 2022 was that the fake Zelensky, Putin and Kim all spoke different languages and had to rely heavily on Google Translate and the help of translators to orchestrate their plan.
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