MOSCOW — French actor Gerard Depardieu has a new permanent address in Russia.

Depardieu had sought Russian citizenship as part of his battle against a proposed super tax on millionaires in France. President Vladimir Putin granted him a Russian passport last month, and on Saturday he got it stamped with his address in the provincial city of Saransk.

Saransk is a city of 300,000 about 400 miles east of Moscow, known for its 18th-century churches. Depardieu was registered in an apartment belonging to his friend's relatives.

Showing his knowledge of Russian history, Depardieu likened himself to Yemelyan Pugachev, the chief of a peasant rebellion of the 18th century, saying: "I am like Pugachev: I am a peasant, and I want to be tsar of Saransk," according to Russia Today television.