What was claimed
A selfie photo of Anthony Albanese with Donald Trump at the 2026 UN General Assembly is actually from 2025.
Our verdict
False. The photo was taken at the 2026 UN General Assembly.
AAP FACTCHECK - Social media users are falsely claiming a 2026 selfie of Anthony Albanese and Donald Trump at the UN General Assembly is actually from 2025.
However, the photo is from 2026, and video footage shows Mr Albanese taking the photo with the US president at the 2026 event.
World leaders convened in New York for the week-long UN General Assembly, which ran from September 18 to 28.
Mr Albanese posted a selfie with the US president on social media on September 23.
"Always good to catch up with @potus," the post reads. "We spoke tonight on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly."
'POTUS' is a social media handle used by the US president and an abbreviation for 'president of the United States'.
However, numerous social media users have claimed Mr Albanese tried to pass off an old photo of himself with the president as evidence of a recent meeting.
"This is a photo from 2025 of Anthony Albanese and Trump definitely not now," a September 23 Facebook post reads.
"Albo thinks we are all idiots."
The prime minister had previously posted a selfie with Mr Trump on Instagram during the UN General Assembly in September 2025.
However, the selfie Mr Albanese posted in 2026 is also genuine.
A September 23 Instagram video posted by Margo Martin, Mr Trump's special assistant and communications advisor, confirms the selfie was taken during the 2026 summit.
At the 38-second mark, the video shows Mr Albanese holding up his phone to take a selfie with Mr Trump.
The US embassy in Australia also reposted Mr Albanese's photo with the US leader on X on September 24, 2026, along with the caption, "Stronger together".
One Facebook post questioning the 2026 selfie's authenticity points to supposed discrepancies in the colour of Mr Trump's tie.
"Does anyone else remember this photo from last year?" the caption said.
"I swear I’ve seen this before!? Donald Trump spoke at the UN this morning wearing a red tie. The photo that Albanese posted has Trump wearing a blue tie."
However, Ms Martin's Instagram video shows that Mr Trump wore a red tie for his earlier UN address, but later changed into a blue tie.
In the video, the US president wears a blue tie during bilateral meetings with several world leaders, including while taking the selfie with Mr Albanese.
At the 29-second mark, Mr Trump is shown wearing a blue tie during a meeting with Venezuela's interim president, Delcy Rodriguez. Photos of that meeting published by The Guardian on September 23 also show Mr Trump wearing a blue tie.
At the 31-second mark of the video, Mr Trump is also wearing the blue tie while meeting South Korean president Lee Jae Myung.
An image published by South Korean news agency Yonhap News also shows the US president wearing a blue tie during that meeting.
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