Denis and Nelya, both 30, from Moscow, Russia invited brown bear Stepan along to their very special ceremony. As well as witnessing the couple exchange vows, the bear also played the role of registrar at one point. Denis said: “We both knew Stepan is a very kind bear but still it is a huge, unpredictable animal so we were a bit scared, but still happy to be able to make our dream come true. It was a fantastic experience to have this photoshoot with Stepan”. (Photo by Olga Barantseva/Caters News)

People take part in a military exercise for civilians conducted by veterans of the Ukrainian National Guard Azov battalion, amid threat of Russian invasion, in Kyiv, Ukraine on January 30, 2022. (Photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters)

Firefighters take part in the bodybuilding event during a firefighting skills contest at the National Fire Service Academy in Gongju, South Korea on June 13, 2023. (Phoot by Yonhap/EPA)

Soldiers from 12 Mechanized Brigade perform a simulated casualty evacuation at the Ministry of Defence training area at Copehill Down on Salisbury Plain on March 9, 2012 in Wiltshire, England. The Defence Secretary Philip Hammond visited the military facility to meet soldiers from the Brigade who are shortly to deploy to Afghanistan for Operation Herrick 16, and troops from the 3rd Battalion, the Yorkshire regiment which lost five of the six men who died this week in the deadliest single attack in Afghanistan since 2001. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

A woman poses for a picture taken by her friend (not in picture) in a temple decorated to celebrate Chinese New Year at Samut Prakan province outside Bangkok February 7, 2016. (Photo by Jorge Silva/Reuters)

Goats wait to get unloaded from a vehicle at a livestock market during Dashain, the biggest religious festival for Hindus in Nepal, in Kathmandu, Nepal October 4, 2016. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

A commercial airline landing at the Princess Juliana International Airport in St Maarten on July 9, 2018. Ukrainians Oleg Kolisnichenko, 36, and Yulia Nos, 25, have been blasted for the “stupid stunt” on Maho Beach, which lies next to the main airport on the Caribbean island of Saint Martin. The stunt was met with criticism rather than praise from social media users. (Photo by SWNS: South West News Service)

Recruits carry ammunition during a military training at a firing range in the Rostov-on-Don region in southern Russia, on October 4, 2022. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the military has recruited over 200,000 reservists as part of a partial mobilization launched two weeks ago. (Photo by AP Photo/Stringer)