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Nelson Mandela; Barack Obama; Raul Castro; Julia Sweig; Robert Mugabe; Dilma Rousseff

U.S. President Barack Obama greets Cuban President Raul Castro before giving his speech, as Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff looks on, at the memorial service for late South African President Nelson Mandela

This handshake is being heard — or rather, dissected — around the world

Global Politics

It’s often the small signals that matter in diplomacy. And today had a doozy. President Obama greeted Cuba’s President Raul Castro, as Obama was making his way to the podium to speak at the memorial service for Nelson Mandela. Did it mean something?