Pictures have emerged showing thumb marks left on the US president’s hand after French President Emmanuel Macron exchanged a handshake with Donald Trump as the pair met on Thursday during the 75th D-Day anniversary celebrations in France’s Normandy.
The vice-like grip came after the heads of state sat down and Macron cast a piercing glance at the US president, with the handshake apparently causing Trump quite some discomfort. The president even appeared to look to the side for a moment as he was apparently taken aback by the force of Macron’s polite gesture, which the French president is well-known for.
For instance, at the peak of what many thought was a budding bromance between the pair, Macron was captured on camera enthusiastically shaking Trump’s hand for a full 25 seconds at Bastille Day celebrations in 2017. A year later, the US president’s hand was left with visible traces of Macron’s hearty welcome after he gripped his hand tightly at the G7 summit in Canada, with photographic evidence suggesting that Macron was completely at ease when shaking his colleague’s hand that hard.
"We have a very really good relationship, very special", the POTUS later commented on Macron. He went still further, asserting that his affection for Macron “is not fake news” while he brushed "dandruff" off the French president's jacket, praising him for being “perfect”.