Did US First Lady Melania Trump Use AI To Write ‘Peace Letter’ To Putin In Alaska?

Last Updated:August 18, 2025, 14:34 IST

Even as Ukraine's Zelenskyy publicly thanked Melania Trump for highlighting the plight of children, the letter led to questions on whether it was generated using AI

U .S. First Lady Melania Trump, U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, from left, pose for a photograph at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland. (Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP File)

During his meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, US President Donald Trump hand-delivered a letter written by his wife, Melania, to Putin. In the letter, the US First Lady, who did not join Trump on the trip, raised the plight of children in Ukraine and Russia.

Even as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy publicly thanked Melania for highlighting the plight of children, the copy of the letter later circulated online led to questions on whether it was generated using artificial intelligence (AI).

What did Melania Trump’s letter say?

The letter, which was shared on Flotus social media accounts, said, “Dear President Putin, Every child shares the same quiet dreams in their heart, whether born randomly into a nation’s rustic countryside or a magnificent city-center. They dream of love, possibility, and safety from danger. As parents, it is our duty to nurture the next generation’s hope. As leaders, the responsibility to sustain our children extends beyond the comfort of a few. Undeniably, we must strive to paint a dignity-filled world for all — so that every soul may wake to peace, and so that the future itself is perfectly guarded. A simple yet profound concept, Mr. Putin, as I am sure you agree, is that each generation’s descendants begin their lives with a purity — an innocence which stands above geography, government, and ideology."

“In today’s world, some children are forced to carry a quiet laughter, untouched by the darkness around them — a silent defiance against the forces that can potentially claim their future. Mr. Putin, you can singlehandedly restore their melodic laughter. In protecting the innocence of these children, you will do more than serve Russia alone — you serve humanity itself."

“Such a bold idea transcends all human division, and you, Mr. Putin, are fit to implement this vision with a stroke of the pen today. It is time," it concluded.

Did Melania write the letter using AI?

Soon after Melania shared the “peace letter" on her official Instagram, online users began speculating whether it had actually been written by artificial intelligence. Critics also pointed out that the letter was vague about which “children" it referred to, or what exactly she wanted Putin to do.

While the message seemed to gesture at Ukrainian children, it never directly mentioned the suffering they’ve endured since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, wrote the American nonprofit magazine Mother Jones.

Democratic strategist Keith Edwards wrote on X: “The letter says a whole lot of nothing…it many have been written by AI."

One account even asked Grok, X’s AI chatbot, to weigh in on the letter. The bot responded that the message was “likely 85 per cent AI-drafted, with minor human edits for tone."

Why the issue matters

Russia’s seizure of Ukrainian children has been a deeply sensitive one for Ukraine. Ukraine has called the abductions of tens of thousands of its children taken to Russia or Russian-occupied territory without the consent of family or guardians a war crime that meets the U.N. treaty definition of genocide.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy conveyed his gratitude to the first lady on his call with Trump on Saturday, Ukraine’s foreign minister said. “This is a true act of humanism," Andrii Sybiha added on X.

Previously Moscow has said it has been protecting vulnerable children from a war zone.

The United Nations Human Rights Office has said Russia has inflicted suffering on millions of Ukrainian children and violated their rights since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Trump and Putin met for nearly three hours at a U.S. military base in Anchorage without reaching a ceasefire deal in the war in Ukraine.

With Reuters Inputs

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