Fact Check: Did Trump threaten to sue Zelenskyy over Ukrainian attack on Russian data centers?
WASHINGTON, DC: Amid the controversial diesel deal between the United States and Russia, a rumor began circulating on social media platforms claiming that President Donald Trump threatened to sue Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over drone attacks on Russian data centers. The claim has sparked speculation and requires a fact check.
Claim: Donald Trump threatened to sue Volodymyr Zelenskyy
According to a viral post on X, “Donald Trump is reportedly threatening to sue Volodymyr Zelenskyy for $5 billion due to the 'irreversible damage to the Trump brand' that Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian data centers have caused by proving his Truth Social app is populated almost entirely by Russian bots.”
The post has garnered more than 200,000 views as of this writing, with the comments suggesting many believe the claim is true, while a few others questioned its authenticity, prompting a fact-check.
Fact Check: The claim originated as satire
The claim, however, is false, as there are no reports of Trump threatening to sue Zelenskyy over Ukrainian strikes on Russian data centers.
The claim that the attack proves the president’s Truth Social app is populated almost entirely by Russian bots is also baseless.
Trump and the White House have made no official statements, announcements, press conferences, or social media posts about a $5 billion lawsuit threat against Zelenskyy.
If Trump had made such a threat, it would not only have gone unreported by prominent news outlets, but would have made headlines.
Additionally, the claim was posted by an X account called ‘The Halfway Post,’ which describes itself in the bio as ‘satire.’ Hence, the claim was intended as a parody made for the sake of engagement.
Donald Trump calls for Volodymyr Zelenskyy's replacement
The claim surfaced amid the tensions surrounding the US-Russia diesel deal and Zelenskyy's criticism of the agreement, following which Trump called for Zelenskyy's replacement, arguing that the Ukrainian leader had failed to reach a deal to end the war.
“I suggest they get a new leader who can make a deal because he could have made many deals and for some reason he never does,” Trump said.
“Zelenskyy could have settled this war many times, many, many times, and he chooses not to. Very difficult. It’s a war that should have never been started. If I were present, if the election weren’t rigged, I would have been president and that war would have never started,” Trump said.
