For some world leaders, a kiss is a well-honed tool of statecraft. Politicians from Mexico to Britain have felt the warm embrace of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, while many a leader has experienced an affectionate smooch from Israeli President Shimon Peres.
But a kiss between pols is not just any old snog, and at times an approaching pair of open arms and puckered lips is a minefield that must be navigated with care. President Jimmy Carter faced criticism at home after he allowed himself to be kissed by Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev in 1979 -- an era before political kissing was common. And today, while a smooch seems par for the course in many countries, Barack Obama still managed to stir up a minor scandal last year after laying one on Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar --a country where kissing between leaders is not standard practice.
The intimacy of the kiss may never fully replace the safety of the handshake among the world's statesmen. But in honor of Valentine's Day, we've collected these images of political displays of affection, from the endearing to the incredibly awkward.
Above, U.S. President Barack Obama leans in to kiss a reluctant Aung San Suu Kyi at her residence in Yangon in November 2012.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez share an embrace in Tehran in July 2006.
Saudi Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah and Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary General Abdul Latif al-Zayani rub noses -- a Saudi tradition -- at a meeting in Abu Dhabi in November 2011.
Angela Merkel and then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy share a kiss upon the German chancellor's arrival in Paris in February 2012 for a joint Franco-German cabinet session. Their personal connection during his time in office prompted the European press to label the pair "Merkozy."
Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker plants one on International Monetary Fund Director Christine Lagarde following a eurozone meeting in Brussels in February 2012.
Israeli President Shimon Peres kisses then-U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the cheek after their meeting in Jerusalem in March 2009.
Then-U.S. President George W. Bush gives new meaning to the term "hands-on diplomacy" during a surprise visit to Afghan President Hamid Karzai's palace in Kabul in December 2008.
Russian President Vladimir Putin braces himself as then-Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi leans in for a kiss following a signing ceremony in Ankara in August 2009.
Barack Obama shares a kiss with Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard during his visit to the continent in November 2011. The Australian proudly reported that Gillard is among Obama's "closest twelve" -- the world leaders whose calls he returned after being elected to a second term.
Spain's King Juan Carlos shares a kiss and a quiet moment with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff prior to a lunch at the Royal Palace in Madrid in November 2012.
While the pair is is no Merkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande still exchange a kiss during a July 2012 ceremony in Reims commemorating the 50th anniversary of renewed relations between the two countries following World War II.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu share an affectionate moment at the prime minister's residence in Jerusalem in October 2011.
Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika greets then-Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak with an onstage kiss prior to the opening session of the 17th Arab Summit in Algiers in March 2005.
Sarkozy and Clinton get close prior to a G-8 meeting in Paris in March 2011.
Iraqi President Jalal Talabani kisses Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. ambassador to Iraq, during a joint press conference at Talabani's residence in Baghdad in July 2005.
Obama and Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker embrace at a NATO summit in Chicago in May 2012.
Then-Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi is the third wheel as Mubarak and President Denis Sassou-Nguesso of Congo-Brazzaville embrace at the Arab-African joint summit in Libya in October 2010.
Britain's Prince Harry gets cozy with Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller during his visit to the island as part of a Diamond Jubilee Tour in March 2012.
