BRUSSELS — If diplomacy is part theater, acted out on meticulously crafted sets, then a protocol blunder this week turned a top-level visit by European Union leaders to Turkey into high drama. and Turkish flags. She ended up propped up by cushions on a side sofa several feet away, and lower than the two men. Adding further insult to the faux pas, her position was mirrored on the other side of the room by Turkey’s foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, whom she outranks. Ms. von der Leyen, who is president of the European Commission, and Mr. Michel, who heads the European Council, are of equal rank in the E.U.

Source: International New York Times April 07, 2021 14:11 UTC