Hand pats, manspreading and tell-tale signs of discontent – there was plenty on display in the body language of Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to show who had the upper hand in their Ukraine negotiations, an expert has told Sky News.
All eyes were on the two world leaders as they met on the red carpet at the Elmendorf-Richardson military base in Alaska, and again as they emerged a few hours later from their much-anticipated summit.
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While at first it was all “genuine smiles”, when the leaders emerged from their private meeting, the lack of a deal was written all over Trump‘s face, according to body language expert and psychologist Dr Peter Collett.
Trump gets the last hand pat
Even in their very first handshake, there was plenty to be analysed in terms of body language, Dr Collett says.
Putin was the first to extend his hand, showing “his enthusiasm, delight” and “commitment” to the occasion.
But within the handshake itself were no less than five “hand pats”, Dr Collett adds, which offer more insight.
“During the handshakes, we also see several pats,” the expert says. Putin got the first, with his “rather tentative and much less dramatic than those produced by Trump”.
By contrast, Trump’s hand pats were a “status reminder” and “his way of telling Putin that he’s the man in charge”.
At one stage, the US president allowed his Russian counterpart to pat his hand. Although this allowed Putin to place his hand on top, seemingly asserting his dominance, this signature move of Trump’s actually allows him to “flex his muscles”, Dr Collett says.
“One of the reasons Trump makes a habit of doing this is that it allows him to flex his bicep and pull the other [person] towards him.”
Importantly, he also got the last hand pat of the interaction, Dr Collett adds. “That’s what we find with high-dominance individuals, particularly politicians, they always want to have the last touch.”
Putin wins on manspreading
Once the pair were sat down in front of the cameras, it was Putin who appeared more dominant, which he achieved through a wider “manspread” than his American counterpart.
The term manspreading first emerged on social media in 2013 when it was used to describe men on public transport who encroach on adjacent seats by spreading their legs wide apart.
“Highly dominant men tend to spread their thighs wide apart,” Dr Collett says.
“If you look at the angle between them, when we compare Trump and Putin, we find Putin with a much wider spread, in other words, displaying much greater dominance.”
During the news conference, Putin’s dominance was also conveyed in his posture, Dr Collett adds.
“In spite of their difference in height, Putin, although he’s very short, sits upright, ramrod, looking very confident, whereas poor old Trump is crumpled and turned inwards.”
This could reflect him having “a lot on his mind that’s bothering him”, the expert suggests.
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Hand behind back shows dominance
As the two leaders moved around the military base, Trump made a point of placing his hand behind Putin’s back.
Traditionally, a show of chivalry, in this context, it was another power play, Dr Collett says.
“It looks like an expression of politeness, but in fact it’s a dominance display, because it’s the person who’s in power, who’s superior, calling the shots.
“They’re guiding the other individual through the space. And that’s exactly what we see here… Trump gets his hand behind Putin and guides him through the next phase of the meeting.”
Genuine smiles
Despite the repeated, thinly veiled attempts to appear the most powerful, both leaders had “genuine smiles” for each other, particularly when they first met, according to Dr Collett.
“What’s interesting is the high degree of smiling,” he says. “It’s a very serious, sombre occasion and yet they find time to smile and display their pleasure – not only at meeting each other but about the whole exercise.”
The smiles were genuine because they “evolve naturally” and “involved both sides of the face”, Dr Collett explains.
“They enlist those special little muscles around the eye, which are an indication of genuine pleasure,” he says.
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Whereas later on, during the news conference, after the pair failed to negotiate a ceasefire, Trump offered Putin a “fake, flashbulb” smile, evidencing his disdain.
All in the eyes – and the mouth
After the two-and-a-half-hour meeting behind closed doors, Trump’s dissatisfaction over the lack of a deal was clear in his body language, Dr Collett says.
He tried to assert what psychologists refer to as “visual dominance” by avoiding Putin’s gaze.
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This technique is often used by “high-status individuals” to assert power – but it could also be a defence mechanism to “remove the negative stimulus” from the situation, Dr Collett suggests.
“Trump hasn’t succeeded in getting a real concession from Putin on this occasion. He’s looking away because he doesn’t want to be reminded of the individual who’s failing to give something he can take to the American public and the world and say, ‘hey look, this is what I succeeded in doing’.”
The shape of Trump’s mouth is another tell-tale sign of his discontent.
He pursed his lips on several occasions, which denotes “self-restraint”, while his “oxbow mouth” showed his vulnerability, according to Dr Collett.
“Politicians are quite fond of using this particular mouth posture because they think it makes them look determined,” he says. But the tensed chin is a “fascinating giveaway”, he adds.
“It’s almost as though they believe consciously that somebody is going to punch them on the chin. So when you see politicians doing that mouth posture, it’s quite often because they’re feeling vulnerable because they feel the need to protect themselves.
“And that’s my feeling – Trump was full of promise, but he came away with nothing, and we find that revealed in his little mouth postures”.
