Photo: A screenshot of the video
The sound was edited and does not correspond to the sound of the original video from Biden and Zelenskyy’s press conference (12 December), published by the prestigious Forbes. The audio was technically processed and edited, so it creates the impression that Biden smiled at a specific question from a journalist. But, even if any of the reporters did put forward the question “Does Biden want Ukraine to win?”, no one can be certain that he laughed at that question since there was no official press briefing after the meeting, and, hence, once the event was over, journalists were shouting their many questions, all at the same time, writes Truthmeter.mk.
Under the content-sharing agreement between Truthmeter.mk and Meta.mk, we republish the text below:
We are fact-checking a post on the social network Facebook (screenshot here) claiming the following:
President Biden, do you think that Ukraine can win this war?
Yes or no?
The answer is typical for a moron.
A video is shared in the post, in which a voice is asking: ”President Biden, do you want Ukraine to win the war, yes or no?”, and at that moment Biden smiles. Other voices can also be heard in the room.
Truthmeter found the original video of the event released on Forbes’ YouTube Channel. The video is from the meeting of US President, Joe Biden and Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, that took place in Washington (12.12.2023). At the meeting, Biden said that if Congress did not vote in favor of allocating aid for Ukraine before the holidays, that would be the best Christmas present for Putin. He added that he had signed US$ 200 million for Ukraine and that the money would be coming quickly.
The decisions made now will determine the future for the next decades, especially in Europe. This is one of those moments. Congress needs to approve the funding for Ukraine before the holidays, before giving Putin the best Christmas present, Biden said.
The video of the meeting posted on Forbes’ YouTube Channel shows that Biden and Zelenskyy give their statements first, and then Biden reveals that he had signed a document for an additional US$ 200 million for Ukraine (around 4:14 in the video).
After announcing that he signed the aid of US$ 200 million for Ukraine, Biden expressed his gratitude and his attitude shows that he has no intention to answer any questions from the journalists. Even the protocol and public relations staff direct the journalists to leave the room and thank them. Biden did not answer a single question.
In the original video from the press conference posted by Forbes, one can hear many voices shouting questions in the background, but none are answered by Biden (see at 4:25 in the video). In the video released by Forbes, one cannot hear as clearly the voice, which according to the post, says:”Do you want Ukraine to win this war, yes or no?”
Maybe a journalist is really asking that question among the many others shouted, but definitely this part of the press conference is not for questions and answers. Therefore, it cannot be said that Biden smiled at that question. In this specific case, reporters are simultaneously asking questions, shouting them out, but Biden is not replying to any of them.
It is easily discernable that the post we are fact-checking has altered content. The sound of the video in the post we analyzed was edited and does not correspond to the sound of the original video from Biden and Zelenskyy’s press conference (12 December), published by the prestigious Forbes. The audio was technically processed and improved, so it creates the impression that Biden smiled at a specific question from a journalist. But, even if any of the reporters did put forward the question “Does Biden want Ukraine to win?”, no one can be certain that he laughed at that question since there was no official press briefing after the meeting, and, hence, once the event was over, journalists were shouting their many questions, all at the same time.
