After Russian President Vladimir Putin protected a record-breaking 5th term in power, a controlled picture spread online that appeared to reveal him holding a picture of Thailand’s late King Bhumibol. In the initial picture, Putin in truth showed a picture of his daddy as he participated in Triumph Day events in Moscow in 2015.
The modified image was shared in a TikTok post on Might 9, 2024, days after Putin started a 5th term with more power than ever.
The 71-year-old Kremlin chief, who has actually ruled Russia considering that the millenium, protected a fresh six-year required in March after winning governmental elections without all opposition.
The image appears to reveal him holding a picture of Thailand’s late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
It is revealed beside a picture of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, who is Bhumibol’s boy, and a various photo of Putin.
Russia and Thailand have actually traditionally taken pleasure in close ties and the Thai royal palace praised Putin on his brand-new term (archived link).
Thai text in white checks out: “Russian leader states he will not fight with Thailand out of regard for King Bhumibol.”
The image formerly flowed on Facebook in 2022, when numerous media organisations consisting of BBC Thai, Thailand’s Voice television and Hong Kong’s Annie Laboratory mentioned it was phony.
Nevertheless, some social networks users appeared to think the picture was real.
“I like that Putin does not forget the benefit of the king of Thailand,” one TikTok user commented.
“Long live the king and thank you President Putin of Russia,” another composed.
Controlled picture
Reverse image searches discovered the initial picture reveals Putin holding a picture of his daddy.
The picture was taken by Reuters professional photographer Maxim Shemetov, according to Alamy stock picture company which released the image.
The picture caption checks out: “Russian President Vladimir Putin holds the picture of his daddy as he participates in the Never-ceasing Program progress the Red Square throughout the Triumph Day events in Moscow, Russia, Might 9, 2015.”
The Never-ceasing Program march is a procession in which Russians throughout the nation parade through cities each Might 9 holding pictures of loved ones eliminated in The second world war.
Below is a screenshot contrast in between the controlled picture in the incorrect posts (left) and the Reuters picture archived on Alamy (right):
AFP released a comparable picture of Putin holding his daddy’s picture at the procession.
Moreover, the other picture of Putin and the picture of King Vajiralongkorn shared in the TikTok post are old and unassociated.
The picture of the king reveals him offering a Brand-new Year’s speech on December 31, 2020, while the image of Putin reveals him providing an address in Moscow on March 23, 2024 after a fatal weapon attack at an auditorium (archived link).