'I'm not in Russia because I'm not a propagandist.' Trump-linked influencer arrives in Ukraine
Photo: Laura Loomer (instagram.com/reallauraloomer/)
Conservative political activist and blogger Laura Loomer, who is associated with US President Donald Trump's circle, has arrived in Ukraine and admitted she was wrong about the country, saying she had fallen for Russian propaganda.
On her X account, Loomer shared a video showing her arrival in Ukraine by train. She captioned the post: "I'm not in Russia because I'm not a propagandist."
Я не в России, потому что я не пропагандист. pic.twitter.com/VD83wjgQNq
— Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) July 20, 2026
Shortly afterward, Loomer published another post featuring a screenshot from the Russian state propaganda outlet Russia Today (RT). The outlet highlighted two of her previous critical posts about Ukraine and suggested that she delete them.
Responding to the post, Loomer acknowledged that she had indeed made those statements but said she now realizes she was wrong and had been influenced by Russian propaganda.
"I did say these things about Ukraine and Zelensky, and I am not deleting my posts because I’ve realized I was wrong. I was living in a media echo chamber, and I was propagandized by Russian media on social media to believe those things. So I came to Ukraine to see the country for myself," Loomer wrote.
She added that she intends to look for evidence supporting the narratives she had previously believed. If she cannot find such evidence, she said she will tell others so they can also recognize they were misled.
According to Loomer, on her very first day in Ukraine she saw photographs of priests killed by Russian forces in Bucha and visited a mass grave where Christian civilians were buried after, she said, Russia "sent forces from Chechnya to massacre innocent people."
The blogger also met with officials involved in efforts to secure the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war. She said they showed her photographs of Ukrainian POWs "who had swastikas engraved into their forehead by Russians."
"Who are the Nazis? I was lied to for years. I realized Ukraine and Zelenskyy aren’t the jihadi apologists… but Russia and Putin are! I was wrong! I have a responsibility to correct the record. Russia is very good at information warfare," Loomer concluded.
Russian propaganda
Earlier this week, former Deputy Chief of Ukraine's Defense Intelligence (HUR) Illia Pavlenko said that every Russian Orthodox Church priest serving abroad has either been recruited by or has ties to Russian intelligence services. He stressed that many people do not even realize they are being influenced by organizations linked to Russia.
In March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also explained why Russia spends vast sums of money on propaganda campaigns across Europe, the United States, and other parts of the world.
According to him, propaganda is one of Moscow's key tools for influencing other countries without having to sacrifice human lives.
