Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin were all smiles as they came face-to-face for the first time since 2018.
With an abundance of physical contact and a round of applause from Trump for the authoritarian leader, body language expert Judi James tells the Daily Mail that he gave Putin ‘the ultimate ego-stroke’ by publicly treating him like a celebrity guest.
‘Trump greeted Putin like a chat show host who has landed an A-list guest,’ James said.
After a lengthy greeting in Anchorage, Alaska, Putin appeared visibly pleased with how it went, and James said he was left ‘purring’ with delight.
The perception of the start of their high-takes talks likely isn’t a good sign for those experts worried that Trump already handed Putin a ‘victory’ by inviting him to U.S. soil for the first time in more than a decade and agreeing to exclude Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
But James notes the U.S. president’s tone swiftly altered when they were in a room for their official talks.
He took a more ‘heavyweight, power pose’ as it was time to get down to business, she notes.
‘After the overkill cordiality of his greeting ritual Trump’s grim expression and his tapping fingertips here suddenly gave him a tougher and less optimistic look,’ James notes.
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin where chummy as they greeted each other in Anchorage, Alaska on Friday
Trump gave Putin a round of applause as he stepped onto U.S. soil for the first time in a decade
Earlier and shortly after touching down in Alaska on Friday, the two world leaders shook hands and gabbed ahead of talks that Trump hopes will lead to the end of war in Ukraine.
Putin was last in the U.S. in September 2015 at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City where he also met with then-President Barack Obama.
Trump was the first off his respective plane, pumping his fist before descending the long staircase and walking a red carpet to wait for Putin to emerge from his own aircraft.
As Putin made a lengthy walk, Trump clapped and smiled, a striking if not peculiar greeting for an authoritarian leader accused of massacring civilians.
The two were chummy as they made contact for a hand-shake and exchanged what appeared to be pleasantries.
James says that the U.S. president’s clapping broke the careful choreography of the day.
‘The gesture seemed to signal reward and celebration. As an act of greeting, it was the ultimate ego-stroke,’ James said.
And in terms of their handshake, she claims that the patting of Putin’s fists and biceps appeared to be ‘re-setting some of the glue that bound them in the past.’
The high-stakes meeting is aimed at bringing an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine – but excludes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky
The two made contact several times, touching hands, elbows and backs as they walked the red carpet together
Trump guides Putin with a hand on his back towards a photo-op in front of Air Force One
While the two have spoken by phone many times, according to the White House, Friday is the first time they are seeing each other in-person in Trump’s second term.
The last time they met other was on June 28, 2019 in Osaka, Japan for the G20 Summit where Trump joked with Putin about election interference, saying: ‘Don’t meddle in the election, please.’
Trump, a known germaphobe, seemed downright cozy with his counterpart, repeatedly touching Putin as they walked down the red carpet together and patted his shoulders, elbows and back.
The duo stopped at a photo-op location on a step-up stage with an ‘Alaska 2025’ sign where they again shook hands.
A reporter shouted to Putin: ‘President Putin, will you stop killing civilians?’ To this, the Russian president pointed to his ear and shrugged, indicating he did not hear or did not understand the question.
Trump then guided Putin with a hand on his back towards his presidential limousine, known as The Beast.
They drove together to a location for their meeting on negotiating an end to the years-long war with Ukraine.
As they were shuttled away, the two were seen through the windows chatting with a large smile plastered across Putin’s face.
‘The glimpse of Putin’s face as he drove off from the airport, sharing a car with Trump, summed up the body language dynamic of the initial greeting of these two men,’ James tells the Daily Mail.
‘His cheeks were rounded in a beaming, smug smile that he turned to the world’s press,’ she added. ‘He’d been ‘stroked’ by Trump on arrival and this ‘purring’ expression appeared to reflect his delight.’
Putin, who is a few inches shorter than his U.S. counterpart, donned a black suit and dark red tie and Trump wore a navy blue suit with his signature vibrant red tie.
An epic flyover of B-2 jets appeared to stun Putin ahead of the meeting, as both men tilted their heads to the sky.
The gesture served as both welcome and warning that Putin stood as guest on sovereign American soil.
