Prince Charles and Mike Pence Deny Handshake ‘Snub’ That Went Viral

The now-infamous handshake snub between Prince Charles and Vice President Mike Pence isn’t what it seems. The video shows the two leaders at the World Holocaust Forum in Jerusalem on Thursday, and when it appears that Pence went in for a handshake with the Prince of Wales, he was denied. Pence’s press secretary, Katie Waldman, told USA Today that the video didn’t tell the full story.

“Vice President Pence and the Second Lady spoke with Prince Charles for five minutes in the preprogram before they entered the hall,” Waldman told the outlet via email. “Also, they shook hands at the end of his remarks.”

Waldman made a similar statement on Twitter earlier today, where she refuted a claim made by The DC Examiner, which has since deleted their initial tweet.

Additionally, Prince Charles’ press secretary Julian Payne retweeted a post stating that the two leaders had a “warm and long” conversation prior to the ceremony. Payne also retweeted Waldman’s tweet showing a video of Pence and Charles conversing backstage.

At the event, Charles spoke frankly about the horrors of The Holocaust at the event.

“The Holocaust must never be allowed to become simply a fact of history,” Charles said to the crowd. “We must never cease to be appalled nor moved by the testimony of those who lived through it. Real violence ensues, and acts of unspeakable cruelty are still perpetrated around the world against people for reasons of their religion, their race or their beliefs.”

“We must be fearless in confronting falsehoods and resolute in resisting words and acts of violence,” he continued. “We must never rest in seeking to create mutual understanding and respect.”

The supposed handshake snub comes among an usually dramatic time in both leaders’ respective political careers. Prince Charles is currently dealing with the fallout that his son, Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, have stepped back from their royal duties. The historic decision by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex has caused some turmoil among the Royal Family, though Queen Elizabeth II has described the talks as “productive.”

Pence, meanwhile, finds himself as the third-ever seated vice president to an impeached president after the House of Representatives impeached Donald Trump last month. His meme-inspiring impeachment trial is currently underway in the Senate, where if convicted, he would be removed from office and replaced with Pence.