Watch | Trump 'humiliates' Macron: Snubs, tense handshakes and more from White House meet
Trending and World News | Discover the subtle power play as Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron meet at the White House. Watch the video of the awkward moments here.
The power dynamic between Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron was on full display on Monday (Feb 24) as the US and the French Presidents met in Washington. Trump appeared to be trying to humiliate Macron, as on multiple occasions, he supposedly on purpose put the visiting leader in an awkward position.
What happened?
Right off the bat, Trump sought to show Macron down as he sent a White House employee to greet the French President instead of welcoming him to the White House himself. Videos and photos of the moment show the French leader pulling up in a black car before being welcomed into the West Wing by Abigail Jones, the Acting White House Chief.
Conventionally, as part of diplomatic tradition, foreign dignitaries are welcomed into the White House by the President of the United States.
This was followed by another subtle indignity as the French head of state was forced to perch on the edge of the Oval Office desk while Trump himself sat in the middle during a Zoom conference call with G7 leaders.
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A handshake for the books?
Also in the spotlight was their handshake, a symbolic moment that, this time, lasted ten seconds—far from the 29-second forceful grip Macron had previously used in 2017 to assert dominance during Trump’s first term.
Also read | Trump warns Russia-Ukraine war could trigger World War III, says talks with Putin 'proceeding very well'
However, netizens were quick to spot that Macron emulated Trump’s signature Yank handshake before the US president could. “He went on the offence and yanked Donald Trump's tiny hand first,” commented one user on X, posting a video of the two leaders.
Another weird moment between the two leaders saw Macron purportedly trying to remove Trump’s hand from his knee.
At one point, Macron was seen touching Trump’s elbow as he stopped and corrected the US President’s claims that European aid to Ukraine was structured as a loan.
“No, in fact, to be frank, we paid sixty per cent of the total effort, and it was loans, guarantees, grants, and we provided real money, to be clear. We have 230 billion of frozen assets in Europe, Russian assets, but it is not as a collateral of a loan because it is not our belonging, so they are frozen,” said Macron.
Trump, who recently made news by pulling the chair for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, was seen purposefully moving to stand at one side as Macron seated himself to sign MoUs with the US.
(With inputs from agencies)