An article shared thousands of times on social media claims FTX, a now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange, funneled US aid meant for Ukraine to Democratic candidates running in the midterm elections instead. This is unproven; public records show no evidence supporting the allegation, which Kyiv, the Pentagon, FTX partners and experts have said is inaccurate.
A video viewed tens of thousands of times on social media has been falsely shared as showing Ukrainian troops attacking Russian tanks with US-made Javelin anti-tank missiles. While the missiles are among armaments sent by the United States and Western countries to Ukraine after Russia's invasion in February 2022, the clip in fact shows footage from the video game ARMA 3.
FTX, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, announced on Nov. 11 it had filed for bankruptcy. Sam Bankman-Fried resigned as the company's CEO. He is a large donor to Democrats, but has also given to Republicans.
FTX partnered with a fundraising site called Aid for Ukraine, where people can donate cryptocurrency to help the country's war effort. FTX's role in the project was to facilitate the conversion of cryptocurrency into regular currency.
There's no evidence that U.S. aid money sent to Ukraine was then used to invest in FTX. Most U.S. aid doesn't go directly to the Ukrainian government, but rather through third parties like contractors or humanitarian groups.
Our ruling
An Instagram post claimed that U.S. aid money sent to Ukraine is being funneled back in the form of campaign contributions to Democrats through the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX.
FTX's former CEO was a large donor to Democrats, but has also given to Republicans. The company's connection to Ukraine was partnering with a fundraising site called Aid to Ukraine that allows people to donate cryptocurrency for the country's war effort. That money was then transferred to the Ukrainian government, not the other way around.
There is no evidence to support the claim. We rate this False.
Update, Nov. 16, 2022: This story was updated to include statements from the U.S. State Department, the United States Agency for International Development and Ukraine's Ministry of Digital Transformation that were received after publication. It also clarifies the job title for Alex Bornyakov. The rating is unchanged.
Verdict: False
The U.K. has not suspended their funding to Ukraine. U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has repeatedly affirmed his support for Ukraine.
On a largely bipartisan basis, Congress has approved about $66 billion in assistance to Ukraine since it was invaded by Russia in February 2022.
• Proposals supported by President Joe Biden that won the support of only Democrats in Congress allocated $482 billion on behalf of U.S. children in 2021.
• One of the efforts from Democrats ' an expansion of the child tax credit that was included in Biden's American Rescue Plan of 2021 ' paid out $92 billion to U.S. families with children, or 1.5 times the amount that the U.S. has spent so far on Ukraine.
Our ruling
A Citizens for Sanity ad said that Biden and Democrats "send a fortune to Ukraine but nothing for our children."
On a largely bipartisan basis, Congress has approved roughly $66 billion in assistance to Ukraine.
By comparison, proposals supported by Biden and that won support of only Democrats in Congress spent $482 billion on behalf of U.S. children in 2021. The child tax credit expansion alone paid out $92 billion to U.S. families with children, or 1.5 times the amount the U.S. has spent so far on the war in Ukraine.
We rate the statement Pants on Fire!
While the Pentagon briefing of the news media highlights the most direct role American personnel have played within Ukraine, to call it "boots on the ground" is an overstatement.
The team will be weapons experts with the aim of keeping tabs on the U.S.-supplied arms in an operation that does not involve American soldiers fighting alongside Ukrainian forces. The inspectors will not be near the frontline, the Pentagon said.
Uganda's president came out as an early supporter of russia but this is not a real CNN headline.
The post appears to be an altered screenshot of a 2014 story on CNN's website. The story features a paused video of Museveni in which he appears wearing the same outfit and in front of the same background as the image of him in the Instagram post.
We found no credible news reports or other sources documenting Museveni as saying it would be disgusting to support Ukraine.
We rate that claim False.
A screenshot of a Gettr post critical of U.S. foreign aid to Ukraine has been attributed to Kid Rock, but it originated on a fan account.
We couldn't find a Gettr account for Kid Rock, and it's not listed among the social media accounts on his website. Kid Rock's website links to his YouTube account and his verified Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts.
We've previously debunked claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy owns a $35 million home in Florida. We couldn't find any credible sources to corroborate the claim in this Gettr post, either.
As for the claim that Kid Rock authored it, we rate that False.
When the Instagram post was shared, Congress was considering legislation that included $20 million in funding for Jackson, Mississippi's water infrastructure. The legislation passed Sept. 30.
Much more funding will be needed to completely address the problems in Jackson.
Our ruling
An Instagram post says Ukraine got $12 billion more in funding but Jackson, Mississippi, has not received any.
At the time the Instagram post was shared, Congress was considering legislation to provide money to both Ukraine and Jackson. The legislation passed Sept. 30 and was signed into law the same day, allocating $20 million to Jackson for its infrastructure.
Much more funding will be needed to fully address the city's problems. But though the city might not have the money in hand yet because the funding was just approved, it's misleading to say the city was completely ignored.
The claim contains an element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression. We rate it Mostly False.
Verdict: Misleading
Several costs estimates are inaccurate
