European Commission downplays missed handshake incident as ‘storm in a teacup’

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen (Johanna Geron, Pool Photo via AP)

The European Commission has downplayed an incident last week at an EU-Africa summit in Brussels during which its president, Ursula von der Leyen, was hardly acknowledged by a foreign minister.

The official, Ugandan foreign minister Jeje Odongo, slightly nodded as he walked past Ms von der Leyen and did not stop to greet her before shaking hands with EU Council president Charles Michel and French President Emmanuel Macron during a staged photo event.