Jawlines, eyelids and ears: Did Trump meet Putin or his look-alike in Alaska?

US President Donald Trump recently met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the much-publicised Alaska Summit. Putin was welcomed with a red carpet, a jet flyover, and even a ride with Trump in the armored presidential limousine, popularly known as “The Beast.”

But soon after the summit, a completely different narrative began trending online.

According to several conspiracy theorists on X, the man who attended the summit wasn’t actually Vladimir Putin.


“It’s quite clearly not Putin. I’m not into conspiracies — but that’s not the Russian dictator,” wrote Kyiv Post correspondent Jason Jay Smart. His post quickly went viral, gaining over 2 million views.

Commenting on his tweet, one user claimed, “The eyelids are totally different. The one in Alaska today has hooded eyelids.”


Another added, “Putin sent his body double to Alaska, who failed miserably under pressure from the US press corps. What a joke.”

A third commentator, Michael Verstraeten, shared side-by-side images of Putin — one from Moscow and another from the Alaska Summit. Highlighting differences in facial features, he wrote:

“Is this one and the same man? Left: Putin in Moscow. Right: Putin in Alaska. Pay attention to his jawline and the dimple in the neck on the right. Also note the more or less similar ears but the distinct bulge just below his ear canal in the photo on the right. Several people who have followed Putin for a long time said today that, based on his actions and expressions, this is not the real Putin. It is not unthinkable that they sent a double to Trump for safety reasons. If that is the case, then this is a real show.”



Meanwhile, Ukrainian social media platforms, including Facebook, are flooded with posts alleging that the man seen with Trump wasn’t the real Putin.

This isn’t the first time such claims have surfaced. In 2023, the Kremlin dismissed speculation that Putin was ill and relying on body doubles.