The two leaders met today at a summit in Finland (nytopinion/twitter)

A New York Times animation has drawn criticism for portraying President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin as a gay couple.

The cartoon was released today (July 16), ahead of a meeting in Helsinki, Finland between Trump and Putin which has attracted protests from LGBT rights activists who want the leaders to address the anti-gay purge in Chechnya.

The New York Times Opinion section’s Twitter account wrote that the animation, which is undercut with audio of Trump complimenting Putin, displayed “the fantasies of this forbidden romance come to life.”

It opens on Trump getting ready in his bedroom for a date with Putin, who is displayed, half-naked, in picture on the US President’s wall.

After Putin arrives, bare-chested, to pick Trump up, the two go for a drive which turns into a flying unicorn ride, as the Presidents are surrounded by rainbows, hearts and butterflies.

They then kiss while Trump squeezes Putin’s nipples, with the cartoon depicting their tongues entangling grotesquely.

The tweet attracted an immediate backlash.

One Twitter user wrote: “Jokes about Trump and Putin being gay or Trump performing sex acts for Putin, are homophobic and in some cases also misogynistic.

“So, stop making them and sharing them. ✌ ”

Jokes about Trump and Putin being gay or Trump performing sex acts for Putin, are homophobic and in some cases also misogynistic. So, stop making them and sharing them. ✌ — Lana Del Gay ️‍ ✨ (@McClellandShane) July 16, 2018

Another wrote: “Aside from the blatant homophobia, you should be seriously f**king embarrassed if the best you can do is the same hacky as s**t joke about how Trump and Putin are gay for each other.”

Aside from the blatant homophobia, you should be seriously fucking embarrassed if the best you can do is the same hacky as shit joke about how Trump and Putin are gay for each other. — Louis Peitzman (@LouisPeitzman) July 16, 2018

One person said: “This is homophobic. It is implying that being gay is an insult for both of these men.

“It implies that being gay would emasculate them. It implies that calling them gay together would anger them and incite reaction. This is beneath us.”

This is homophobic. It is implying that being gay is an insult for both of these men. It implies that being gay would emasculate them. It implies that calling them gay together would anger them and incite reaction. This is beneath us. https://t.co/Zk95DgQOpN — Phillip Picardi (@pfpicardi) July 16, 2018

Another wrote, simply, that “jokes about Trump and Putin being gay together are homophobic.”

Jokes about Trump and Putin being gay together are homophobic. — Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) July 16, 2018

And author Dianna E. Anderson said that “jokes about trump/putin as gay lovers are homophobic and bad not to mention incredibly lazy.”

jokes about trump/putin as gay lovers are homophobic and bad not to mention incredibly lazy — Dianna E. Anderson ️‍ (@diannaeanderson) July 16, 2018

Last year, last night talk show host Stephen Colbert attracted criticism for joking that Trump and Putin engaged in gay sex.

The presenter of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert avoided censure after telling Trump that “the only thing your mouth is good for is being Vladimir Putin’s cock holster.”

And he told his audience he didn’t regret making the remark, saying: “I have jokes; he has the launch codes. So, it’s a fair fight.”