'Mutual Respect': Obama Greeted Like a Servant by Cambodia's First Lady

During a recent visit to Cambodia, President Barack Obama appeared to have been slighted by the country’s first lady without realizing it.

Bun Rany, wife of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, appeared to greet Obama with a dismissive gesture meant to be used in addressing servants. The incident occurred after a “tense” meeting between Sen and Obama over human rights concerns the WH has with Cambodia’s government.

In the placement of her hands and her posture towards Obama, Bun Rany appeared to be insulting the president when she was introduced to him, according to the Investor’s Business Daily. Her husband looked on during the exchange, smiling.

Other commenters claim that Bun Rany was trying to greet President Obama as a peer through her gesture, but the Investor’s Business Daily editorial board claimed the move was “a little dig that was probably lost on him but not to Asians.”