Photo of Biden, Zelensky manipulated to show leaders holding hands

This article is more than one year old.
Published on February 22, 2023 at 18:29
3 min read
By Bill MCCARTHY, AFP USA

Social media users are claiming a photo from Joe Biden's surprise trip to Kyiv shows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky holding his US counterpart's hand to keep him nearby. This is false; the image has been digitally manipulated to re-position the leaders' hands, the New York Times photographer who took the picture confirmed to AFP.

"This is the most pathetic photo. Zelensky holds Joey's hand so he won't wander off," says one February 21, 2023 tweet sharing the image, which was retweeted thousands of times. Similar posts appeared across Twitter and other platforms, including on Instagram.

Screenshot from Twitter taken February 21, 2023

Screenshot from Twitter taken February 21, 2023

The image emerged after Biden traveled in secret to the Ukrainian capital, on February 20, days before the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of the war-torn nation. Air raid sirens blared as Biden walked alongside Zelensky during the historic visit, the US president's first to Ukraine since the conflict began.

But the supposed hand-hold picture has been digitally altered.

A reverse image search shows that in the original photo -- taken by New York Times photographer Daniel Berehulak and featured in the outlet's reporting on the visit -- the two leaders are seen walking beside each other, their hands fully separated.

A New York Times watermark and tagline crediting Berehulak remain visible in some of the digitally altered versions of the image circulating online -- as well as the watermark for a Twitter account that says in its bio it focuses on "meme making."

Berehulak, who also shared his original picture on Instagram, told AFP in an email: "My image has definitely been digitally manipulated. In my original they are definitely NOT holding hands."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Daniel Berehulak (@danielberehulak)

Naseem Amini, communications manager for the New York Times, added: "I can confirm that the version of the photo circulating online has been manipulated from its original form."

Other photos and footage from the day also show Biden strolling beside Zelensky without holding his hand.

US President Joe Biden (L) walks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at St Michael's Golden-Domed Cathedral during an unannounced visit, in Kyiv on February 20, 2023 ( AFP / POOL / Evan Vucci)