Trump's ASEAN Summit Handshake May Be His Most Ridiculous Yet

Oh, the struggle.
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President Donald Trump was thrown off by a handshake intended to kick off an international conference in the Philippines on Monday.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Manila began with an opening ceremony and photo op of attending world leaders. The heads of state were invited on stage to participate in the conference’s traditional handshake, in which they cross their arms and join hands with the leaders next to them.

Here’s what it looked like when President Barack Obama attended the conference in Laos in 2016.

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Here’s how it went for Trump:

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According to The Associated Press, “the announcer’s instructions briefly baffled Trump.” The photos below captured the confusion:

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1. Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte motions for Trump to step forward.
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2. World leaders begin to take each other's hands. Trump turns to Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
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3. Trump uses his right hand, instead of his left, which is required for such a handshake. Phuc turns to Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, who also offers the wrong hand.
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4. Trump notices something is amiss. Medvedev just sticks with it.
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5. Trump begins switching his hands.
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6. But the reach is a little far for him.
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7. He gets there.
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8. Though he appears to look a tad uncomfortable.
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9. More than a tad.
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10. There we go.

Trump’s bizarre handshakes have made headlines since he was sworn into office, and even prompted world leaders to prepare for the peculiar greeting in advance.

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