Latest fact checks & sources

“I have strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared,” Trump wrote. But there aren’t thousands of Ukrainian troops in Kursk any longer. They left days ago, despite what Putin may claim. “It’s wise to rely on intelligence,” Tatarigami advised, “not Putin’s word.”

What was claimed: A video shows Ukrainian troops surrendering in the Kursk region on 11 March 2025. Our verdict: The clip predates this and has been shared online since at least April 2022.

What was claimed: A photo shows President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently wearing a suit to meet WEF founder Klaus Schwab because he is his “actual boss”, amid criticism Mr Zelenskyy received for not wearing one to meet President Trump. Our verdict: This photo shows the two men in suits in 2020, before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, after which President Zelenskyy stopped wearing suits publicly.

What was claimed: A video shows the Ukrainian flag being flown from the top of the Statue of Liberty. Our verdict: This is not a real video. A watermark in the bottom right corner suggests it was made by OpenAI’s text-to-video artificial intelligence model, Sora.

The journalist was not on Ukraine’s so-called kill list or in the Myrotvorets database. His sister and local police believe that his death was unrelated to his journalistic activities. […] Ultra-right-wing and conspiracy-minded InfoWars journalist Jamie White was indeed murdered in Austin on the evening of March 9, on his way home from work. And in June 2024, he claimed on his X account that he had been added to a “list of enemies of Ukraine” but he provided no links or evidence that this list existed. Russian propagandists assumed he was referring to Myrotvorets, but White’s name does not appear in that database. Moreover, Myrotvorets is not funded by the U.S. State Department or USAID and is not a “kill list.” It catalogs individuals deemed a threat to Ukraine’s national security and operates through crowdfunding. Moreover, the screenshot White posted of the alleged “list” does not match the actual appearance of the Myrotvorets website. There is no evidence that Jamie White was on any “list of enemies of Ukraine” – and it is doubtful that such a list even exists.

A video went viral on X claiming to show Jews in Amsterdam celebrating the establishment of a new Jewish state in Ukraine. Misbar investigated the viral claim and found it to be misleading; the video is unrelated to Ukraine and was recorded in 2016 in Alkmaar, not Amsterdam. Through reverse image search, Misbar’s team found that the video shows Maccabi supporters celebrating in Alkmaar, Netherlands. The full video could be found on a YouTube channel called “Maccabi Fanatics.”

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.

Claim: As of February 2025, the United States had given $350 billion in military aid to Ukraine for its war with Russia. Rating: False. Context It’s possible to arrive at varying totals depending on how military aid is defined or by considering how much money was allocated – as opposed to actually paid out – by the U.S. government, but none of these totals amounts to $350 billion

A post shared on X claims to show Ukrainian troops surrendering in Kursk in 2025. Verdict: Misleading This video is from 2022 and shows Ukrainian troops surrendering in Mariupol, not Kursk.

Claim: Warren Buffett has given more than $500 million to Ukraine. Context: Howard Buffett, Warren Buffett’s son, donated more than $800 million to Ukraine since 2022, through his own foundation.

Claim: U.S. Vice President JD Vance’s cousin Nate Vance fought in Ukraine for three years during its war with Russia. Rating: True

Is Nate Vance — who criticized the Trump administration’s reduction of support for Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion — Vice President JD Vance’s cousin? Yes, that’s true: Nate Vance is the first cousin of JD Vance. His father, Jim Vance, is the brother of JD Vance’s mother, Beverly. Nate Vance detailed the family connection on social media, and online records show their family connections.

What was claimed A compilation video shows five clips of the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy dancing. Our verdict The first clip actually shows Argentinian dancer Pablo Acosta, while the second has been manipulated using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to superimpose President Zelenskyy’s face onto the dancer’s to create a deepfake. The other clips are genuine, however.

WHAT WAS CLAIMED A video shows Donald Trump calling Ukraine’s leader “Temu Zelenskiy” for not wearing a suit. OUR VERDICT The video is an AI deepfake from a self-described parody account.

The Verdict: Misleading. According to reports, the video actually shows Ukrainian servicemen surrendering in Mariupol in 2022.

The TV station that reported the news does not exist. The bank’s management recently stated that it is not considering a sale.

Agencies have paused humanitarian parole programs, including for Ukrainians in the U.S., following a Trump executive order on Jan. 20.

WHAT WAS CLAIMED: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and a journalist had an exchange about the impending peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. OUR VERDICT: Fake: No such exchange on diplomacy and Russia’s concessions took place between Hegseth and a reporter in a press briefing after a NATO defense ministers’ meeting on Feb. 13.

WHAT WAS CLAIMED: A video shows people being made up to look like war-torn Ukrainian soldiers to get more US funding. OUR VERDICT: False. The clip shows behind-the-scenes footage from the making of a music video.

A post shared on Facebook claims the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) paid Time Magazine to name President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Time Person of the Year. Verdict: False. There is no evidence for this claim.