Pro-Trump influencer Laura Loomer visits Bucha in Ukraine and publicly admits she believed Russian propaganda for years
Laura Loomer, a far-right US blogger close to President Donald Trump, travelled to Ukraine on July 21, visited Bucha where Russian forces killed hundreds of civilians in 2022, and posted on X that she had been influenced by Russian propaganda; Zelensky's office welcomed the visit as an opportunity to show Ukraine's reality
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Summary
Laura Loomer, a far-right US influencer treated as close to President Donald Trump, visited Ukraine on July 21 and travelled to Bucha, the town northwest of Kyiv where Russian forces killed hundreds of civilians in 2022. After the visit, Loomer published a statement on X acknowledging she had believed Russian propaganda for years and urged her followers to reconsider their views of Russia. The Ukraine War has become a politically charged issue in US domestic politics, with parts of the MAGA movement sceptical of US support for Kyiv. Volodymyr Zelensky's office publicly welcomed Loomer's visit, framing it as an opportunity for a prominent Trump ally to see the conflict's reality first-hand. Loomer previously made statements that Ukrainian observers described as dismissive of Russian atrocities.
The split
Ukrainian outlets (Rubryka, Kyiv Independent) treated the visit as a diplomatic win, quoting Zelensky's office and framing Loomer's reversal as a useful shift in the information war. US liberal press (New Republic) was more sceptical, questioning whether the admission reflected genuine belief or political repositioning as Trump's policy on Ukraine evolves. US right-wing media coverage was absent from the feed, leaving a significant gap in how the story played across the audience Loomer most directly influences.
By the numbers
- 2022, when the Bucha killings took place, a defining moment cited by Loomer as having changed her view
- Several years, the period over which Loomer says she believed Russian propaganda about the war
Why it matters
Loomer's reversal, if it shifts even a fraction of the MAGA media audience toward more critical coverage of Russia, would matter for US domestic support for continued aid to Ukraine. Kyiv's decision to welcome and amplify the visit is a deliberate soft-power play aimed at Trump-adjacent audiences at a moment when US congressional support for Ukraine is contested.
What to watch
- Whether Loomer's stated change of position on Russia persists or is walked back after the Ukraine visit
- Any change in Trump's public messaging on Ukraine aid following the visit and Loomer's posts
- Reactions from other MAGA influencers and commentators to Loomer's shift