Five friendships in politics

It looks like the Russian president and his US counterpart exchanged a friendly handshake during their first meeting at the G20 summit in Hamburg. But all is not well between former best buddies Vladimir and Donald. They used to be super-close (too close, some say). Yet now The Donald has signed legislation introducing harsh sanctions against Russia.

Cheers - to friendship! Former US president Barack and German chancellor Angela got along swimmingly during his time in office, aside from that time when he spied on her and her government. That's not what friends do, Barack! But Angie forgave him and was very sad when Barack's time at the White House came to an end: "Taking leave from my partner and friend is hard."

British Prime Minister Tony stood by US President George W. even when times were rough - after September 11, 2001, when the US had been attacked and a little while later, when hardly anyone else in "Old Europe" wanted to help George W. with his War Against Terror. Despite protests from his people, Tony never wavered in his support for George W. That's what friends are for!

George Bush senior found a close friend in German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. Helmut is considered the engineer of German reunification, but he couldn't have done it without US support. When Helmut died in June 2017, George said: "Working closely with my very good friend to help achieve a peaceful end to the Cold War and the unification of Germany...will remain one of the great joys of my life."

When Hillary's husband, Bill, became president and the couple moved into the White House in 1993, Hillary was having a tough time. Six days after she became first lady, Hillary went to ask former First Lady Jackie for advice. The two are said to have talked like pals for two hours, about raising children in the public eye and clothes. Hillary still remembers Jackie's advice: "You have to be you."