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Several viral claims related to the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) linked to Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and US President Donald Trump. Let’s look at these claims first.
Social Media Posts :
Claim 1: President Dissanayake did not meet US President Trump at an international convention, marking a historical first for Sri Lankan presidents.
A collection of photos showing former Sri Lankan presidents with former US presidents claimed that for the first time in history, Anura Kumara had become the only Sri Lankan President who was unable to meet a US president during or after a world leaders’ summit, as seen below.
Fact Check
On September 23, 2025, President Donald Trump hosted a special dinner reception at the Lotte New York Palace Hotel for world leaders attending UNGA’s 80th session. President Dissanayake was in attendance, joining heads of state from around the world in this diplomatic setting.
According to the official Sri Lankan Presidential Media Division, President Trump and President Dissanayake engaged in a cordial conversation and posed for a photograph together at the event. However, no exclusive bilateral meeting took place between the two leaders.
Source: Presidential Media Division – Official Statement
News Coverage: Ada Derana | The Morning | Daily Mirror
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s official X account also posted about the event in this manner.
Meanwhile, some social media posts attempted to imply that the photo taken of Donald Trump and his wife alongside the Sri Lankan president was not an actual photo, but rather an edited image.
To test this, we examined the photos of other heads of state who attended the event and observed that President Trump posed for pictures with his wife in a similar pose on most occasions. The slight change in Melania’s facial expressions, along with the varying portion of the US president’s flag visible in her background, confirms that these were different photos.
One hundred forty-five heads of state participated in this meeting, and the event was not open to the media. Some international media outlets reported on it here.
Claim 2: Authentic-looking photographs circulating online show a formal, exclusive bilateral meeting between Dissanayake and Trump.
A purported photo of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and US President Donald Trump was published on social media, stating that a special meeting had taken place between the two leaders.
Meanwhile, another photo was also published similarly.
Fact Check :
We conducted a reverse image search on the viral image and found a related press release by the Presidential Media Division regarding this matter.
A meeting had taken place between President Donald Trump’s Special Representative for South and Central Asia and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. We noticed that the background of the photo taken there was similar to the one being shared on social media.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has also posted regarding this on his official X account.
Accordingly, it can be seen that the photo of Sergio Gor and President Anura taken on the above occasion has been edited to appear as if it were taken with US President Trump and Sri Lankan President Anura.
Below is a comparison between the edited photo and the actual photo.
Presidential Media Division
Commenting on the above occasion, the Presidential Media Division explained that a special meeting took place between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the President’s Special Representative for South and Central Asia, the United States Ambassador designated to India, and White House Chief of Staff, Sergio Gor. It had taken place on the 23rd at the Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations. Facebook
However, we inquired with the Presidential Media Division to ascertain whether any special meeting had taken place between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the US President.
They confirmed that no special meeting has taken place between the US President and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
Delegation at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who attended the United Nations General Assembly session, met with the President of Portugal and held bilateral discussions with the Prime Minister of Australia.
Similarly, bilateral talks between President Anura and the Prime Minister of Pakistan, a meeting between President Anura and the President of South Africa, and a meeting between the President and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights had already been held. You can view more information regarding this here, here, here and here.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake addressed the United Nations General Assembly at 12.45 am Sri Lankan time on 25th at the UN Headquarters. You can view it here.
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Conclusion :
The first claim, suggesting President Dissanayake never met the US president, is misleading – while no formal bilateral meeting occurred, both leaders attended the same diplomatic reception and posed for photographs together. Second claim showing formal bilateral meeting photos is false – these images were digitally manipulated, replacing Trump’s Special Representative Sergio Gor with President Trump. The Presidential Media Division confirmed that no exclusive bilateral meeting took place between the two presidents during the UNGA.
Title:Find Out The Truth Behind The Photos of President Dissanayake with Donald Trump at UNGA!
Fact Check By: Fact Crescendo TeamResult: Insight
