Giant Vladimir Putin banner unveiled on New York's Manhattan Bridge

A banner with Vladimir Putin on it was hung on the Manhattan Bridge in New York. Photo / @Maytham / Twitter

A giant banner with an image of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the word "peacemaker" has been unfurled from a New York City bridge.

The banner was spotted hanging from the Brooklyn side of the Manhattan Bridge on Thursday. It shows Putin in a suit with a Russian and Syrian flag as backdrop.

Witnesses told the New York Post they saw two people unfurl the banner at about 1:45 p.m. Police say officers removed it about an hour later.

The bridge crosses the East River and connects lower Manhattan with downtown Brooklyn.

Police were investigating. There had been no arrests on Thursday evening.

In a similar incident in 2014, a large Palestinian flag was suspended from the Manhattan Bridge by solidarity groups during a protest march across the nearby Brooklyn Bridge.

A banner with the Russian & Syrian flags & Vladimir Putin in a suit with the phrase "Peace Maker" appeared on Manhattan Bridge in #NY #USA pic.twitter.com/1HMF6MYujz

— maytham (@maytham956) October 6, 2016