A History of ‘awkward’ handshakes: Trump and Macron share a ‘tug-of-war’ moment outside Oval office | Watch

US President Donald Trump and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron met at the White House on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The two leaders, both smiling, shared a lengthy handshake outside the Oval Office, exchanging mutual pats on the shoulder. Trump then pulled Macron in closer to continue the greeting. They then waved at the press before heading into the West Wing. A video of the interaction quickly went viral on social media, with many calling it a “tug-of-war” moment.

“Donald Trump greets French President Emmanuel Macron with an absolute death grip of a handshake. Something tells us Macron isn’t going to enjoy this meeting very much,” one person commented.

Another wrote, “The handshake battle continues between President Trump and President Macron.”

A third user commented, “French President Emmanuel Macron losing the handshake war with President Trump. Macron should have brought the big man of the house to give this handshake instead.”

Another person wrote, “The subtle handshake war between Macron and Trump has been off the charts today.”

Amid the viral moment, a video showing their previous “awkward” handshakes also gained attention. The clip includes their handshake from 2017 during Trump’s visit to France for the Bastille Day military parade and a second from their 2024 meeting in Paris for the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral. The video, shared by social media commentator Colin Rugg, received over 300k views in just two hours.

Macron ‘interrupts’ Trump –

After Monday’s handshake outside the Oval Office, Trump and Macron held a joint press briefing, during which Macron “interrupted” Trump while he was discussing Ukraine funding. Trump claimed that Europe “is loaning the money to Ukraine and getting their money back.” Macron stopped him mid-sentence and said, “No, in fact, to be frank, we paid. We paid 60% of the total effort.”