In mid-November, Russian state-aligned media outlets and social media platforms, particularly X, actively circulated claims that jewellery stolen from the Louvre Museum in October had allegedly been discovered during a search of the home of Ukrainian businessman Tymur Mindich, a former business partner of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This information was published by Russian pro-government propaganda outlets such as Tsargrad, as well as Life.ru and ridus.ru. However, the images of the allegedly stolen necklace shown in the video, which was also shared by pro-Russian internet users, were generated using artificial intelligence. The fake was debunked by French journalists from France 24 and fact-checkers at Myth Detector.

Journalists from France 24 contacted the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), which clarified in response to their inquiry that no jewellery stolen from the Louvre had been found in the possession of Tymur Mindich. NABU also emphasized that the video in question did not originate from the agency. Information about the alleged discovery was not reported by any reputable Ukrainian or Western media outlet, which is another typical indicator of false claims.

A key piece of evidence demonstrating the fabrication is the visual analysis of the alleged “proof” itself, namely the images of the jewellery. The necklace shown in the video differs significantly from the actual necklace of Empress Marie Louise that was stolen from the Louvre. The necklace in the video contains only round emeralds and motifs consisting of four diamond petals. By contrast, the original piece alternates square and round emeralds, features drop-shaped pendants, and includes five-petal motifs. These discrepancies indicate that the image was most likely created using generative artificial intelligence, which often struggles to accurately reproduce complex objects.

Fact-checkers from Myth Detector analyzed the audio heard in the video using the Hiya audio detector integrated into the InVID and WeVerify tools. According to the results, there is a high probability (89%) that the audio was generated by artificial intelligence.

Source of the fake

The video was first published on the Pravda FR website. The French government agency Viginum, which specializes in countering foreign digital interference, identified Pravda FR as a resource linked to the Russian disinformation network Portal Kombat.

The spread of this fake also corresponds to the characteristic features of the Kremlin’s disinformation campaign known as Operation Matryoshka, which frequently disguises itself as reputable media outlets or official organizations. The claim that items stolen from the Louvre were found in Tymur Mindich’s house is disinformation.

Posts are circulating on social media, including in the Polish segment of Facebook, featuring alleged statements by “French General Jacques Guilmain”, in which he describes NATO as a “perpetual aggressor” (citing the wars in Serbia, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Afghanistan) and claims that it was Ukraine, not Putin, that violated the Minsk Agreements. These posts have attracted thousands of shares and comments, with users endorsing anti-Western narratives and blaming the United States and banks for all wars. However, this is a fake that was debunked by the Polish fact-checking organization Demagog.

Key findings of the debunk:

Russia bears full responsibility for the war in Ukraine, including the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the full-scale invasion launched in 2022. Violations of the Minsk Agreements occurred on both sides, but Moscow played the key role by financing separatists and obstructing OSCE monitoring. NATO is a defensive alliance, and its actions in past conflicts were often carried out under a UN mandate or in response to aggression.

Attempts to shift responsibility onto NATO or Ukraine by attributing such claims to “authoritative” military officials are a manipulative technique used to justify aggression and mislead the public. Jacques Guilmain is not a general, and his statements constitute propaganda.