TWO BAD HOMBRES IN MEET & GREET
Dour Don sidesteps Vlad-MBS slay’ bro-mance
“You da madman!” “No, you da madman!” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Russian strongman Vladimir Putin — both accused of brutally killing critics of their repressive regimes — exchanged a hearty handshake and hug Friday while yukking it up at the G-20 summit in Argentina.
The usually stoic Russian president’s eyes lit up when he spotted the young crown prince, and he strode toward him with a big grin while holding up his hand for a high-five.
The pair embraced and vigorously shook hands, with bin Salman repeatedly patting Putin’s right hand with his left as they exchanged greetings and grinned like long-lost besties.
At one point, a poker-faced President Trump could be seen walking behind the two leaders, paying them no attention, although he later greeted bin Salman.
“They exchanged pleasantries at the leaders session, as he did with nearly every leader in attendance,” a senior White House official said on background.
Asked later what he and bin Salman discussed, Trump said, “We had no discussion. We might, but we had none.”
French President Emmanuel Macron was also captured on camera interacting with the crown prince.
The Saudi Gazette newspaper posted video of the meeting online showing the two speaking in hushed tones with their heads close together, with Macron looking bin Salman in the eye and at times nodding and smiling.
A French official told Reuters that Macron conveyed “very firm” messages to the prince over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. He also pressed the need to find a political solution for the situation in war-ravaged Yemen.
Trump had been scheduled for a sit-down with Putin but changed his mind on Thursday, saying he was angered at Russia’s recent seizure of three Ukrainian naval vessels and their crews near Crimea.
“Ukraine. Purely and simply — Ukraine,” he said Friday. “We don’t like what happened. We’re not happy about it. Nobody is. And, hopefully, they’ll be able to settle it out soon because we look forward to meeting with President Putin. But on the basis of what took place with respect to the ships and the sailors, that was the sole reason.”
Trump dismissed speculation that his former lawyer Michael Cohen’s guilty plea Thursday in