WATCH | Canada PM Trudeau meets Alberta premier with an awkward handshake

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met Alberta's premier Danielle Smith on Tuesday (February 7) to discuss the shared aspirations and concerns over pending legislation aimed at helping Canadian workers adapt to the global move to increase reliance on renewable energy. The meeting, however, began with an awkward handshake.

A video tweeted by Global News showed the meeting beginning with Prime Minister Trudeau reaching down to shake hands with Danielle Smith. Both leaders were seen raising their hands but at the last moment, a hesitant Smith decided to keep her hand down. This prompted Trudeau to take her hand and hold it in place with his thumb atop as they smiled for the cameras.

However, this is not the first time Justin Trudeau has had awkward handshakes. In 2017, Trudeau had dodged then-United States president Donald Trump's forceful handshake by putting a hand on Trump's shoulder to brace himself, according to a report by The Guardian.

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And in 2016, the Canadian prime minister attempted to shake hands with then-US President Barack Obama and then-Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, by awkwardly crossing his arms over and grabbing Peña Nieto’s wrong hand, the report added.

Meanwhile, Tuesday's short meeting between Justin Trudeau and Danielle Smith comes as she is in Ottawa with other premiers for a major announcement on healthcare funding. Smith has been one of the most vocal critics of Trudeau and his government's policies.

Recently, Smith passed a controversial legislation, the Alberta Sovereignty Act,which would give her government the power to instruct provincial agencies to ignore federal law, the report also said.

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