Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is accused of buying two luxury yachts in October with Western aid money, in the name of two of his closest aides. But is there any truth to these claims? We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.
Verdict: False
There is no evidence Zelenskyy has bought two yachts. [...]
The broker companies that are selling the yachts confirmed to multiple journalists, such as BBC Verify reporter Shayan Sardarizadeh, that the yachts are still for sale.
A post shared on X, formerly Twitter, claims BBC News published a video about Bellingcat researchers reporting that former Ukrainian official Alexey Arestovich spent $500,000 on private flights.
Verdict: False
There is no evidence for this claim. BBC News and Bellingcat both denied they made any such report'
The Ruling: False.
Volodymyr Zelensky has not bought a $48.9 million yacht, as confirmed by the broker handling its sale.
There is no evidence a similar purchase has been made elsewhere. Funding to Ukraine is heavily audited and itemized, making it very difficult, if not impossible, for Zelensky to make such a purchase using U.S. contributions.
As of November 25, Poland has not announced that payments to Ukrainian refugees will be suspended from January 1, 2024. The screenshot, which propaganda alleges to originate from the Polish government website, was edited.
Propagandists have significantly distorted the article in The Telegraph. On the contrary, the author believes that such statements lack logic. The Telegraph article states that for a successful advance, the Ukrainian military needs not only Western tanks, but also complete air dominance, the latest military technology, and complete freedom of action, including in enemy territory. The author of The Telegraph calls on the West not to reduce the intensity of military assistance to Ukraine, and moreover, to provide Ukraine with the necessary amount of modern precision strike weapons (ATACMS, F-16 fighters, the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Munition (JASSM), etc.).
The owner of the billboard, Clear Channel Outdoors, told Reuters that the ad in the video is fake.
Verdict: False
There is no evidence that the Washington Post published this article. A Washington Post spokesperson denied the claim.
Ukrainian Minister of Economic Development Yulia Svyrydenko did not make such a statement. The quote was spread only by pro-Russian outlets and social media netizens. Ukraine condemns the rocket attacks and aggression of Hamas against the population of Israel, and calls for every effort to de-escalate the conflict to seek peace and protect civilians.
During a Nov. 5, 2023, interview on NBC News' "Meet the Press" program, Zelenskyy did say: "If you can't give us some financial support [...] give us a credit, and we will give you back money after the war." However, he did not ask for a loan, which is different from asking for a line of credit.