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Did Donald Trump humiliate Emmanuel Macron? French President’s Oval Office seating sparks buzz
French president Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump also shared what seemed like a lengthy handshake at the time of former's arrival at the White House.
US President Donald Trump hosted his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron at the White House on Monday, with the two leaders seemingly sharing a friendly bond. However, what caught my eye was Trump's apparent humiliation of the French president.
During a Zoom call with world leaders from the Oval Office, Macron appeared to be seated in the corner of Trump's desk, while the US President sat in the middle in a comfortable leather chair, a report from The Daily Mail said.
A picture of the moment has now gone viral on social media, showing Macron perched by the side of Donald Trump's Oval Office desk.
Vice President JD Vance was also seen seated comfortably, wide-legged on the other side of Trump.
Many also noticed that the French president was welcomed into the West Wing by Acting White House Chief of Protocol Abigail Jones instead of Trump. However, a short while later, Trump greeted Macron with a firm and lengthy handshake.
The lengthy handshake moment was also characterised as a "tug-of-war" moment by netizens on social media.
ALSO READ | A History of ‘awkward’ handshakes: Trump and Macron share a ‘tug-of-war’ moment outside Oval office | Watch
Notably, Trump's accusation of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and claim that it was Kyiv who started the war rather than Russia had sent Europe into a shock.
However, Macron, during his meeting with the US President, cautioned that his interests cannot bend to Moscow, noting that any peace agreement does not amount to Ukraine's surrender.
Trump also said that he believed Russian president Vladimir Putin would accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine, saying that if a deal is done, then "he's not looking for more war".
The US president hoped that the war in Ukraine would end within weeks, adding that Zelenskyy would soon come to Washington to sign a deal giving America the access to Ukraine's critical minerals, an agreement which the Ukrainian president had refused recently.
Additionally, Marcon also noted that Trump had "good reason" to re-engage with Putin but said that it was critical for Washington offer "backup" for any European peacekeeping force.
Reportedly, the call with global leaders (G7 leaders) made together by the US and French presidents was on the same day as the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The US' refusal to blame Russia for the war in Ukraine has led to its split with its European allies in the votes on three UN resolutions which sought to end the three-year-long war.
ALSO READ | France's Macron warns after Donald Trump talks: 'Ukraine peace can't mean surrender’
The Europe-backed Ukrainian resolution at the UN General Assembly called out Russia's aggression and immediate withdrawal of its troops from Kyiv.
Amid the disagreement with its European allies, UK prime minister Keir Starmer is also set to visit the White House on Thursday. Macron also said that he would work with Starmer on a proposal to send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine in the face of a peace deal.
"After speaking with President Trump, I fully believe there is a path forward," said Macron.
With Trump's push for a peace deal to end the Ukraine war, European leaders remain concerned that Putin might end up getting whatever he wants if Kyiv is not present at the table at every step of the way.
(with inputs from agencies)
