Pool Report on Obama-Gaddafi Handshake

Pool report

***2:59:23 PM Obama and Qaddafi shake hands as the leaders file on for a family photo*** (This shot was probably with Obama's back to the head on camera, but may still be visible)

*More to come

*Dinner hosted by the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano

Fed by Host TV

I held in a pen with official photographers shooting of a meet and greet of leaders ahead of the dinner. Singh, Lula, Harper, Merkel and others mingled with one another.

Obama walked in at 2:50:50 PM Eastern and posed for a picture, standing between Italian President Napolitano and PM Berlusconi and then went to mingle with others, including UN Sec Gen Ban Ki Moon and Turkish PM Erdogan, most of the time he had his back to the camera.

At 2:55:42 PM Libya's Qaddafi entered in a colorful outfit. He had a red and gold draping over his shoulder and wore a matching shirt and pants that were an orangish color with a waving pattern.

***2:59:23 PM Obama and Qaddafi shake hands as the leaders file on for a family photo***

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*Meet and greet; family photo and dinner hosted by the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano and that's a lid

This fed on Host TV

More on the NOTABLE MOMENT. The handshake. Obama wore a polite look but not exactly a smile as he shook Qaddafi's hand. This happened as the leaders filed onto steps for a family photo. I checked the picture on one of the official photog's cameras to get a good look at Obama's face since this happened so quickly. Qaddafi shook several other leaders hands as he walked down the front row to take his place for the picture

***NOTE for TV: I watched the tape of the Host TV feed and they ***DID NOT*** capture the handshake. It appears their camera/s were focused elsewhere at the time. However host does get a good shot of Qaddafi sitting just two seats away from Obama, with Berlusconi in the middle, at the dinner.

***Host TV captured no notable sound from Obama with anyone

NEW
Obama sat between Berlusconi and a man who appeared to be Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade (based on the picture provided in the briefing book)  towards the middle of a very long, wide table decorated with bouqets of flowers.

Full recap

I held in a pen with official photographers shooting the meet and greet of leaders ahead of the dinner. Singh, Lula, Harper, Merkel and others mingled with one another. Later, Obama walked in and posed for a picture, standing between Italian President Napolitano and PM Berlusconi and then went to mingle with others, including UN Sec Gen Ban Ki Moon and Turkish PM Erdogan, most of the time he had his back to the camera.

Libya's Qaddafi entered in a colorful outfit. He had red and gold cap a red and gold draping over his shoulder and wore a matching shirt and pants that were an black and orange/peach color with a wave-like pattern.

***Obama and Qaddafi shake hands as the leaders file onto steps for a family photo***

Upstairs, Obama sat between Berlusconi and Wade, with whom he chatted, towards the middle of a very long, wide table decorated with bouqets of violet, hot pink, yellow and orange flowers. There were perhaps 15-20 seats on each side. Qaddafi sat on the other side of Berlusconi - so just two seats away, not the four we originally thought they would be

In an antechamber just outside the main room, Violinists played a slow classical tune, led by a director and an elegantly dressed blond woman sang. A clutch of flags of the world were set up against one wall.

Napolitano, who stood directly across from Obama, spoke in Italian for about 7 minutes into a small microphone. Obama looked on. He was wearing earphones with simultaneous translation. (which I did not have. Based on my knowledge of Romance languages, he touched on the economic crisis (he said 'crisis economica') and mentioned Bretton Woods and John Maynard Keynes and climate change ('cambiente climatico' sp?), but that's about all I could make out with certainty.)

After Napolitano finished speaking, all media were kicked out, including Host TV.

We have a lid