Protocol for Trump in Asia means no insults, no surprises

WASHINGTON » When in Asia, make sure handshakes aren’t too long — or short. Don’t bobble names or titles. Stifle the critical tweets. Don’t question the food.

These points of etiquette and protocol are part of the region’s core culture known as “face” — keeping yours, helping others save theirs. In many ways, they are the opposite of President Donald Trump’s impulsive, in-your-face style.

Trump is set to depart Friday on a 10-day visit to Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines. He has a hefty economic and national security policy agenda, and, like any president, there are high stakes for his standing on the global stage.

But before anyone gets to policy, there is protocol: the application of rules, etiquette and cultural norms for meetings between dignitaries. How are rooms set up? Are titles correct on the place cards? Who’s sitting next to whom?

“One of the things with protocol is obviously to do no harm,” Sean P. Lawler, Trump’s nominee to be to be U.S. chief of protocol, said Wednesday before the Senate committee considering his confirmation. As the director of visits and diplomacy for the National Security Council, he will accompany Trump on the trip.

“One of my goals right off the bat,” Lawler added, is to “set the stage for diplomacy for the president.”

Protocol is aimed at preventing surprises and embarrassment through careful planning and choreography.