In April 2025, Telegram channels distributed a photo that allegedly depicted the cover of one of the Ukrainian periodicals. It and the note published there, bloggers say, speaks of the deadly danger of rare earth metals to the health of children. We have verified the authenticity of these photographs.

Two pictures went viral on April 24. The first photo shows the cover of the magazine “Family Life Stories” with a headline about the dangers of minerals for children’s health. The second, presumably, shows the text of the note itself. According to the authors of the viral posts, this is how Ukrainian propaganda prepares the country’s residents for the transfer of mineral resources to the United States.

Photos were shared by Telegram channels "Voblya • news"(136,000 views at the time of writing this analysis), "Ukraine.ru"(131,000), "Sheikh Tamir"(110,000), Nina Vatt (35,000), "Actually in Kherson"(34,000), etc.

In early February, US President Donald Trump statedthat further military and financial support that Washington provides to Kyiv will depend on an agreement on the use of Ukrainian rare earth metals. At the same time, the terms of the deal began to be actively discussed: the American side insisted on full access to the subsoil, and the Ukrainian demanded in exchange for security guarantees. Negotiations were tense and reached its peak on February 28, when Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky came to Washington to sign the treaty, but there was a public spat between politicians, after which the Ukrainian leader left the White House early. The scandal temporarily froze negotiations to reach an agreement and subscribe The document was only succeeded on April 30. Deal covers more than 50 types of minerals, including 17 rare earth elements, important for the defense and high-tech industries. These resources remain the property of Ukraine, and the United States will have priority rights to invest in their development through a joint fund.

Photos of the cover and notes allegedly from a Ukrainian magazine circulated on April 24, that is, about a week before the signing of the agreement. A day earlier, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with his Ukrainian counterpart Sergei Marchenko, after which emphasized the need to conclude a deal “as soon as possible.” The authors of posts in Telegram channels claim that it was against this background that the Ukrainian media began to incite society to transfer the country’s mineral resources to America (although the final agreement does not provide for this).

Two photographs are posted to prove this statement. The first shows the magazine “Family Life Stories” standing on a shelf with other newspapers. On the cover there is a certain substance against the background of a radiation sign and the title of the main article of this issue: “Mineral resources are killing our children.” In the second picture you can read the text of this very note: “Lithium, uranium, titanium - all these “rare earth metals” are now in the news. But why doesn’t anyone say that these metals are a terrible poison right under our feet? Lithium has a negative effect on the central nervous system and kidneys. Titanium - on the liver and lungs. And the older generation knows firsthand about the dangers of uranium. Now think about it - all these elements have a detrimental long-term effect on children. In addition, children are shorter than adults - accordingly, they are closer to the ground and inhale more poison. So maybe it’s for the best that the United States wants to get this rubbish and take it away from Ukraine? What is more valuable to you personally: the health of your children or the poisonous muck lying uselessly in the ground? The choice is obvious."

On website “Ukrposhta,” where you can sign up for a monthly subscription to this magazine, has its description: “Every month there are 32 pages of incredible stories about human destinies, protectors, love, loyalty and betrayal. Fairy tales for children, parables, humoresques, anecdotes, crossword puzzles and horoscopes.” The magazine belongs to media corporations "Є", and by archives The publisher’s website shows that the note from the viral photo does not at all correspond to the format and theme of the magazine.

Neither on the website “Є”, nor on official resources “Ukrposhta"There is no issue with this cover. The latest issue of the magazine to date is published at number 3, and there is not a word about rare earth metals in it. The design of the covers of “Family Life Stories” in general differs significantly from the viral photograph. Firstly, from 2022 they come out with the flag of Ukraine and the signature “Resilience on the path to victory.” Secondly, the font colors are also different: in the viral photo, the article titles are orange and black, while on the original covers they are red.

On the left is a viral image, on the right is a cover photo from the official website ye.ua

Upon closer examination of the image, defects unusual for such publications are noticeable - the contours of the font are blurred, and pixel transitions are visible between the text and the background. This may indicate that the text was inserted using a graphics editor, where a transparency effect was probably used. In addition, the font is colored with different weights and located with different indents, which is extremely rare in mass production of printed materials.

Judging by the viral photo, the magazine is on a store shelf next to other periodicals. A reverse Google image search showed that to the left of it - March issue of Burda magazine, but by the time the photo was distributed, at least April number. It is unlikely that at the end of April the latest issue of the magazine “Family Life Stories” stood on the counter next to back issues of other publications.

The layout of the note from the second viral image also differs from the original pages of the magazine. First, at the beginning of each Family Stories article there is an illustrative photograph. Secondly, at the top of the page the name of the section within which the text was published is usually indicated. In addition, the texts are formatted differently, and the viral photo does not have characteristic identifying elements such as the issue number or page.

On the left is the viral image, on the right is the original article. magazine "Family Life Stories"

Finally, to confirm the existence of such an issue, all the publications examined by “Verified” contain only two photographs. Given the high profile of the deal negotiations, it is unlikely that such a magazine cover was photographed just once. Ukrainian media did not write about the publication of such a note - the photos were distributed mainly in the Russian-language segment of social networks and in Telegram channels. First time pictures published Telegram channel “Sheikh Tamir” on April 24 at 13:39, after which they dispersed through other channels. This resource is often meets in analyzes “Verified” as a distributor and primary source of fakes about Ukraine.

Fact checkers from the Ukrainian project StopFake contacted the publisher of Family Life Stories for comment, who confirmed that the issue with such a cover had never been published. May 5, media corporation "E" released a statement in which she called the distributed photographs fakes. It also notes that the layout in the viral image does not correspond to the design of real issues of the magazine, and the style of the text is alien to the editorial policy of the publication.

Thus, the pictures distributed on Telegram channels, allegedly proving that before the signing of the deal on rare earth metals in Ukraine, they issued notes about their harm to children’s health, are falsified.

Cover photo: social networks