On October 26, Georgian– and Russian-language Facebook accounts (1; 2) shared a photo depicting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European Council President António Costa. In the photo, Zelenskyy appears to be wearing black platform shoes.
The photo showing Zelenskyy’s meeting with Costa is not genuine. Both the visible flaws in the photo and the result of AI detection tools confirm that it was AI-generated. Authentic photos from the meeting demonstrate that the leaders’ appearance and clothing were different from those shown in the circulated image.
On October 23, 2025, Volodymyr Zelenskyy attended an EU meeting in Brussels. During the meeting, it was noted that Ukraine requires adequate financial and military support to resist Russian aggression. The EU expressed its readiness to continue supporting Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, including through strengthened humanitarian assistance.
The fake photo of Zelenskyy and Costa first appeared on the platform X. Several accounts, including one named Lord Bero, which has previously been repeatedly observed spreading disinformation, posted the photo on October 24 and 25.
Authentic photos from the October 23, 2025 meeting show what Zelenskyy and Costa were actually wearing. These photos can be found in the photo archives of AFP and the European Council.
Photo from the European Council archive (left) and photo from the AFP archive (right)
There are several differences between the fabricated photo and the real ones. As genuine images show, Zelenskyy was not wearing platform shoes. In the manipulated version, António Costa’s eyeglasses have been altered. Typical AI-generated flaws are visible on Costa’s fingers, which appear fused, and on the microphones in front of him, where media logos are deformed. Similarly, the faces of the people standing behind the presidents are distorted, and they all appear to be standing in nearly identical positions.
We have also examined the photo using AI detection tools, Hive Moderation and Sightengine. Both tools indicated with high probability that the photo of Zelenskyy and Costa was generated by artificial intelligence.
Accordingly, the circulated photo was created using AI with the intention of discrediting the President of Ukraine.
Prepared by Mashiko Giorgobiani
Myth Detector Lab
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