Joe Biden’s ‘touchy-feely’ meeting with King Charles had ‘made up for Coronation snub’

Joe Biden’s touchy-feely meeting with King Charles III on Monday may have gone some way to repairing relations since the president’s perceived Coronation snub, according to palace aides. Biden, 80, missed the crowning of the monarch, 74, instead sending his wife and First Lady Jill Biden to the event. Some saw the move as a snub to the new King. However, if the King took issue with Biden’s absence, he certainly didn’t show it during their meeting at Windsor Castle on Monday. In fact, a spokesperson for Charles noted the ‘personal warmth’ between the two men. Their meeting was ‘extremely cordial and successful’ which ‘touched on a wide variety of issues of mutual interest and concern’, according to the spokesperson. They added: ‘You will have seen for yourselves the personal warmth between His Majesty and the President.’ That warmth was on full display when Joe Biden greeted the monarch. He left a lingering hand on King Charles’s elbow – something which appeared to momentarily surprise the King – and placed his hand on Charles’s back as the two walked and spoke. Biden placed his hand on the King’s back twice more throughout the visit.