“With the two of them, you can tell that Trump’s at home, obviously he’s sitting back and he’s quite comfortable,” said David Alssema, a body language expert in Perth. “Malcolm Turnbull moved a fair bit through the conversation — he’s on edge of the seat, he changed hands and positions and so on. It just shows the comfortability factor is not so much there.”

Seeking Common Ground

Did the delay in holding the meeting make Mr. Turnbull nervous? It’s hard to tell from the video, but the wait was widely seen in Australia as a snub — and Mr. Turnbull seemed eager to overcome any awkwardness caused by it.

After Mr. Trump repeatedly remarked that it had been “a big day” because of the House vote, the Australian prime minister chimed in: “I know the feeling. We have challenges with our Parliament, too.”

He went on to explain the Australian legislative process in more detail than Mr. Trump may have needed.