WorldPride 2026 parade depicts Trump and Putin as kissing couple
The installation, titled “The Kissing Couple,” featured enormous figures resembling the two world leaders. (Image: Getty)
A giant inflatable kiss between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin became one of the most talked-about moments at Amsterdam’s WorldPride 2026 Canal Parade this weekend.
The installation, titled “The Kissing Couple,” featured enormous figures resembling the two world leaders leaning in for a kiss while dressed in Delft blue-and-white costumes and holding tulips – a reference to the traditional Dutch ceramic figurines found in souvenir shops across the Netherlands.
The float travelled through Amsterdam’s famous canals on 1 August as hundreds of thousands of spectators gathered for the annual Pride celebration, where around 80 decorated boats filled the route with music, colour and protest.
“We did not want to provoke, but to pause power for a moment and highlight something human,” organisers behind the installation wrote on their website.
Trump has repeatedly praised Putin, whose government has overseen sweeping restrictive policies against LGBTQ+ people in Russia, including laws restricting LGBTQ+ organisations, public expression and discussions of queer identities.
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten, an out gay man and the first sitting Dutch prime minister to participate in the Canal Parade, posted a video to X saying the celebration carried “greater significance than ever” as LGBTQ+ rights and safety face growing pressure internationally.
His comments came just days after an attack targeting a Pride event in Berlin left one person dead and 29 injured on 25 July.
Security was increased at Pride events across Europe following the attack, including in Amsterdam, where police patrols monitored the canals during the parade.
