On Aug. 18, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump hosted a meeting at the White House, bringing together Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and key European leaders to explore possible paths toward peace between Ukraine and Russia.
During this meeting an image began circulating online allegedly showing the European leaders waiting in a White House hallway before being received by Trump. One X user captioned (archived) the image:
Trump has the Presidents of a Germany, France, the UK, Finland, the leader of NATO and the leader of the European Union waiting outside the Oval Office in chairs like they're at the dentist office.
Meloni looks like she's been moved to a more comfortable waiting space.
This is utter humiliation of these corrupt scumbags. Absolutely beautiful. He should've given them mops so they could clean up the place a bit while they were just sitting there!
(X user @JoeyMannarinoUS)
"Humiliated and insulted in the White House corridor. Waiting for the master," another X post (archived) read.
The claim spread on multiple social media platforms, including Threads, LinkedIn, Reddit, 9GAG, X, Facebook, as well as Russian-language accounts on Telegram.
In short, the photo was not real. It showed clear signs of being artificially generated, including distorted body parts, inconsistent floor patterns and figures that didn't resemble the leaders they were supposed to portray. Artificial intelligence detection tools and other fact-checking organizations also concluded the image was fake.
How we know this image is fake
A closer look at the image revealed multiple signs indicating it was not real. One of the most obvious giveaways was the presence of extra legs and shoes between the figure meant to resemble French President Emmanuel Macron and the woman beside him. The faces and body details also showed irregularities. Macron's face, when zoomed in, appeared unnaturally flat and overly-smooth, with distorted contours and an expression that lacked the depth of a real photograph.
(X user @Greg4Patriot / Snopes Illustration)
In addition, the floor pattern was inconsistent and the figures meant to depict European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni did not resemble them.
(X user @Greg4Patriot / Snopes Illustration)
Finally, the European leaders attended the Washington meeting in different attire than what was visible in the hallway image. For instance, von der Leyen wore an orange blazer with black trousers, while in the AI-generated image she was shown in a teal dress.
Below is a photograph from the meeting, shared on X by Macron, showing the leaders in their actual outfits.
(X user @EmmanuelMacron)
AI-detection tools confirm the image is fake
The Hive Moderation tool flagged the image as AI-generated with 99.8% probability.
(Hive Moderation)
Similarly, other tools such as Sightengine and DecopyAI also assessed the picture as AI-generated, each with probabilities close to 100%.
Fake image debunked worldwide
The Center for Counteracting Disinformation, a working body of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, also debunked the image.
(X account @CforCD)
Organizations including LeadStories, BBC and AFP also investigated the image, and Brazilian fact-checking organization Aos Fatos and Polish fact-checking organization Demagog both concluded that the image was fake.
Meeting of Trump on Ukraine
The Aug. 18 meeting of Trump with European leaders including France's Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Friedrich Merz, Italy's Giorgia Meloni, the U.K.'s Keir Starmer, Finland's Alexander Stubb, NATO's Mark Rutte and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was aimed at exploring potential paths to end the war in Ukraine. The gathering followed a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska earlier in the month.
On Aug. 19, citing anonymous sources, Politico reported the U.S. was exploring Budapest, Hungary, as a potential venue for a future trilateral summit involving Trump, Zelenskyy and Putin.