Reports have claimed that Melania Trump appeared to pull away from a hand-hold attempt by Donald Trump during a state dinner hosted in honor of King Charles III, sparking online debate after a video of the moment went viral.
According to Radar Online, footage from the event shows Melania briefly releasing Trump’s hand during a photo opportunity before he reaches for her again and the pair momentarily interlock fingers.
This comes as Trump made a lighthearted remark about his marriage during the same royal visit, joking that his marriage to Melania would not match the 63-year union of his parents. Turning to her, he reportedly said, “that’s a record we won’t be able to match, darling.”
Fact check
While Radar Online described the moment as a “rejection,” the circulating video shows only a brief adjustment in hand placement during a posed photo moment, followed by Trump reattempting to hold hands.
No verbal exchange or visible disagreement is present in the footage.
The White House has not issued any statement addressing the interaction.
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Social media reactions
The Radar Online post triggered a flood of responses on social media, with users directly disputing the claim of a “rejection” in comments.
One Instagram user wrote, “Rejected it where? — I’m not seeing that,” while another said, “She took his hand…that’s not rejection.”
A third comment added a longer breakdown of Trump’s marriage remark, stating, “He said he didn’t think they would make it to 62 years married like his folks. Pretty simple math. Married 21 years. Is currently 79 years old. They would need to be married another 41 years and that would make him 120 years old.”
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Another user commented, “the behavior is harmonious for both, the second is inappropriate comments,” while another wrote, “She rejected nothing!! Knock it off.”