Thailand’s foreign ministry has firmly rejected claims that French President Emmanuel Macron knelt before King Maha Vajiralongkorn during the Thai monarch’s historic state visit to Paris this week, after an AI‑generated image spread rapidly across social media and ignited nationalist commentary online.
The visit the first official trip to France by a Thai king since 1960 marked the 170th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations. During a state dinner at the Élysée Palace, Macron presented King Vajiralongkorn with the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest distinction, and Queen Suthida with the Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit, according to Thai media.
But an image circulating widely on Thai‑language Facebook pages appeared to show Macron kneeling as he handed over the royal decorations. One post featuring the picture drew more than 40,000 likes and 2,000 shares within a day, and was amplified by a page with over two million followers known for pro‑military and nationalist content. Commenters praised the supposed gesture, calling it “deeply touching” and saying Macron had “won Thai hearts.”
The foreign ministry says none of it is real.
“There is no evidence of any image showing Emmanuel Macron kneeling to present a royal decoration,” an official told AFP, confirming the picture was artificially generated.
AFP’s Factcheck team ran the image through OpenAI’s verification tool, which determined it had been “generated with OpenAI tools.” A comparison of the queen’s outfit in the viral image with AFP photographs from the event also revealed clear inconsistencies. Official images released by Thailand’s foreign ministry showed no instance of Macron kneeling during the ceremony or dinner.
The incident highlights how AI‑generated visuals can rapidly distort public perception especially during high‑profile diplomatic events and underscores growing concerns about misinformation spreading unchecked across social platforms.
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