Through a social media post, it has been claimed that US President Donald Trump has spoken about Kosovo and the "rejection of American projects".
Page "Gazzetta Journal" on Facebook, on June 23rd published a content titled "Donald Trump 'salutes' Albin Kurti and Dejona Mihali: We pay trillions for your security, while you reject American projects."
The truth?
Donald Trump has not made such a statement. He has on several occasions spoken about the money spent on security in Europe and for allies, but has never specified Kosovo. Nor can one find a credible publication that quotes Trump criticizing Kosovo for “rejection of American projects and interests.”
What does the published content say?
The content claims that Trump sent a message to the leader of the Vetevendosje Movement (LVV), Albin Kurti, and the coordinator of committees in this party, Dejona Mihali.
It mentions "pro-Trump critics" who assess that "Pristina has recently chosen a path that does not reflect gratitude."
The article does not quote any media outlets nor does it indicate where Trump made this statement.
Part of the content:
"We have spent trillions of dollars to protect Europe and our allies, including Kosovo. We have soldiers, bases, and American taxpayer money here to provide you with security. And what do we get in return? Rejection after rejection of American projects and interests," Trump's message reads.
The post has received 1.6 thousand likes, more than 700 comments and 238 shares. The content has also been republished by other social media sites (see here) and a portal in Albanian (see here).
A search in "Google" with the alleged quote does not lead to any credible article that would prove that it is a statement made by Trump.
Also, if it is requested with "Trump talks about Kosovo” or “Trump talks about Kurti"In the last 30 days, there are no credible articles indicating that Trump has given such a position on Kosovo."
Analyze:
The claim that US President Donald Trump has criticized Kosovo for "rejecting American projects" even though "the US spends trillions of dollars on its security" is not true.
Verifications do not find any statement or reliable source confirming this quote.
The publication distributed on social networks represents a fabricated statement unsupported by facts.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info assesses this publication as "Fake News".
rationale
The “Fake News” rating is given to informational content that is entirely fabricated or that contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be defined as having been created and distributed with the intent to misinform the public, i.e., to present a claim that is completely false as fact.