G7 leaders photo doctored to insert image of South Korean president

The doctored photo -- which appears to show Yoon with G7 leaders at the Itsukushima Shrine in Hiroshima -- was shared on Facebook on June 15, 2023.

Korean-language text embedded below the image translates as: "A restored national pride. At the centre of the G8 is Yoon Suk Yeol, a proud president."

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Screenshot of the Facebook post with the doctored photo. Captured July 5, 2023.

The G7 group of top economic powers -- the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan -- was formerly known as G8.

Russia joined in 1997 but was indefinitely suspended in March 2014 following its annexation of Crimea.

South Korea is not a G7 member state but Yoon attended the Hiroshima summit as one of eight guest nations (archived link).

Photos published by the Japanese Foreign Ministry and its official press release show he was not present when G7 leaders visited the Itsukushima Shrine (archived link).

The doctored photo was also shared on Facebook here and here, as well as here on Naver Band, a South Korean forum.

Hiroshima summit

A Google reverse image search found a corresponding photo published on the website of the Council of the European Union (archived link).

Its caption says: "G7 summit, Hiroshima, Japan, 19-21 May 2023".

The original photo shows Kishida, the summit's host, standing at the centre between French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Joe Biden instead of Yoon.

Below is a screenshot comparison of the doctored photo (left) and the original photo published by the EU Council (right):

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Screenshot comparison between the doctored photo (left) and the original (right)

A separate keyword search found other photos from different angles on the website of the Hiroshima summit, also showing the Japanese leader in the centre of the group when they posed for the picture (archived link).

The photos are part of an album titled "Visit to Itsukushima Shrine (Family Photo)".

AFP photos and footage of the event show the G7 leaders standing in the same order (archived links here and here).

AFP has previously debunked a similar claim about a photo doctored to place Yoon in the centre of world leaders at the NATO summit in June 2022, suggesting the South Korean leader was held in high regard internationally.