A near-international incident occurred on the world stage when Prince Charles, greeting dignitaries around the globe to a ceremony in Jerusalem marking the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, appeared to skip over U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence in a handshake line.
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Prince Charles Denies Snubbing VP Pence Despite Missing Handshake
Cameras were on hand as Yad Vashem recorded the proceedings in close detail.
The Prince of Wales shook hands with European Jewish Congress president and founder of the World Holocaust Forum Moshe Kantor, unmistakably strode past Pence and his wife, Karen, and then shook hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Speculation immediately began that Prince Charles might have deliberately snubbed the Vice President of the United States at a Holocaust memorial.
It's easy to see where many would think that.
The prince didn't even glance at Pence, moving right past him to the next in line like he wasn't even there. Pence, for his part, didn't even extend his hand, just tapping the prince on his arm as he walked by.
So, naturally, Twitter dined out on it, with some saying Pence deserved a snub, and other decrying Prince Charles's lack of diplomacy.
Of course, not everybody was convinced that the missing handshake was a deliberate rebuke of Pence.
"Prince Charles has had over 50 years in diplomatic training," one person noted. "If you think he would do this intentionally, with cameras filming, you need to get a life."
Nevertheless, it quickly became apparent that some officials would have to weigh in on the matter.
Buckingham Palace did indeed admit that Prince Charles failed to shake Pence's hand in greeting, but denied that it was deliberate. A palace official told the BBC that the prince and the VP had a "long and warm conversation" before the ceremony.
VP Pence's press secretary, Katie Waldman, confirmed the palace's account on Twitter as well.
So it seems that once again, Twitter was making more out of the situation than either Prince Charles or VP Pence.
During what proved to be quite appropriate remarks at the ceremony, Prince Charles said that people "must be fearless in confronting falsehoods and resolute in resisting words and acts of violence," and reminded the audience that "hatred and intolerance still lurk in the human heart."
h/t: National Post, BBC
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