What was claimed: A video shows Russian president Vladimir Putin laughing with his face in his hands during a comedy routine in which Volodymyr Zelenskyy appears to play the piano with his penis, before he became president of Ukraine.
Our verdict: False. These two clips are from different events and have been edited together to misleadingly make it appear as if President Putin was in the audience for the routine.
Fake.
Context: The image was a misleadingly edited screenshot of an article that ran in the New York Post. The real headline of that article was, "Meet the tough women leaders taking on Vladimir Putin."
This video is fake. Propagandists used the French newspaper's branding to fabricate a story about a non-existent poll. According to recent polls, Putin is widely disliked in France - only 10% of respondents view him positively.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky says Vladimir Putin has broken 25 peace agreements in the past decade
Verdict: Misleading.
While the video does show Putin discussing a ceasefire in relation to the Russia-Ukraine War, it is not recent but from June 2024.
Did a video circulating on social media show Russian President Vladimir Putin making a public statement about Russia's terms for a ceasefire in Ukraine in March 2025? No, that's not true: The clip had been online for nine months. It showed Putin's remarks from June 2024.
What was claimed: A video shows the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, calling Vladimir Putin a "butcher" and commenting on his "war crimes" during a press conference with US president Donald Trump.
Our verdict: This isn't quite right. Mr Macron referred to killings in the Ukrainian town of Bucha and mentioned war crimes, but did not describe President Putin as a "butcher".
How common is it for democracies to postpone elections during wartime?
Under the terms of Ukraine's constitution, elections cannot be held while the country is under martial law (which was declared by Mr Zelensky in February 2022 following Russia's invasion, and has been extended multiple times by Ukraine’s parliament).
Experts have also noted a number of practical obstacles to holding elections - around one-fifth of the country is currently occupied by Russia, millions of Ukrainians are displaced or serving on front lines, and there are security concerns.
Under the terms of Ukraine's constitution, elections cannot be held while the country is under martial law (which was declared by Mr Zelensky in February 2022 following Russia's invasion, and has been extended multiple times by Ukraine's parliament).
After US media reported Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had spoken on the phone about ending the Ukraine war, social media users shared a video claiming it shows the US leader giving details of the call. Experts told AFP the video appears to be a deepfake. While neither Washington nor Moscow officially confirmed any conversations between the leaders when the clip surfaced, Trump later revealed he had agreed with Putin to immediately start negotiations during a call on February 12.