Big Talks At The Big Table Leaders At A Distance

For those at the top, decor and furniture can be tools to impress, charm, and intimidate.The seat of power in Game of Thrones is a towering iron chair forged from the melted swords of defeated enemies, while Bond villains have been known to decorate their headquarters with shark tanks.

- Oliver Holmes

In real life, however, there is Vladimir Putin and his massive white table. Russia’s leader has started hosting one-on-ones with foreign dignitaries at a gargantuan oval table, roughly five metres long and held up by three thick pillars. But what is the message behind Putin’s table, if there is one?

On Monday, he hosted Emmanuel Macron at the three-legged colossus. The French president had flown to Moscow with a puffed chest, promising an “intense” talk with Putin, where he said he would seek a “historic solution” to the impending threat of war between Russia and Ukraine.