A picture released by the chancellor showed the president at bay at the G7 – and it’s an image the US too seems happy to promote

Merkel's G7 photo says everything about Trump's diplomacy – or does it?

Merkel's G7 photo says everything about Trump's diplomacy – or does it?

Donald Trump’s trade adviser, Peter Navarro, insisted on Sunday that the president was “willing to talk to any world leader”.



Trudeau 'stabbed us in back' on trade, says Trump chief economic adviser Read more

But a day after Trump left a trail of diplomatic chaos from Canada to Singapore, the site of his summit with Kim Jong-un of North Korea, a picture of world leaders apparently confronting Trump dominated reactions to the G7 summit.

The picture was taken by Jesco Denzel, a German government photographer, and released by Steffen Seibert, spokesman for the chancellor, Angela Merkel.

It shows Trump, arms folded and eyes glaring, sitting while around him stand a group of world leaders and their advisers.

Merkel is centre stage, arms planted on a table, with the Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe, standing to her left, arms folded and a look of resignation on his face.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, stands next to Merkel, partially obscured, with the British prime minister, Theresa May, more obscured still at his right.

To many observers the photograph, a rare glimpse of diplomatic activity not wreathed in smiles and handshakes, seemed both a summation of the effect of Trump’s “America first” foreign policy and the perfect pictorial accompaniment to a tense couple of days in Canada.

Departing Washington on Friday, Trump called for Russia to be readmitted to the G7, four years after it was thrown out over the annexation of Crimea. At a Saturday afternoon press conference in La Malbaie, he blamed Barack Obama for the Russian invasion of Ukraine and complained about the US being a “piggy bank” which he said other countries were “robbing”.

Play Video 1:54 'We're like the piggy bank that everybody's robbing' says Donald Trump at G7 – video

In the picture released by Merkel, John Bolton, Trump’s national security adviser, stands at the president’s right. Showing that images of conflict can be deployed by both sides, the hawkish former United Nations ambassador used the same picture in a tweet issued after Trump’s early departure from the summit.

Bolton wrote: “Just another #G7 where other countries expect America will always be their bank. The president made it clear today. No more.”

That prepared the ground for Trump’s attack on the Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, and the US withdrawal from a communique on trade negotiated in an attempt to defuse tensions over Trump’s protectionist policy.

The release of the picture caused animated commentary around the world about body language and what it might say about relations between the US and its allies in the Trump era. It was followed on Sunday by a furious attack on Trudeau by Trump’s leading economic advisers.

Fabian Reinbold (@fabreinbold) One scene - four different perspectives #G7



1) by Merkel‘s team 🇩🇪

2) by Macron’s team 🇫🇷

3) by Conte’s team 🇮🇹

4) by Trump’s team 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/q3qaSfaiQS

But every picture tells a story. Other images of the same gathering suggested a more relaxed interaction, Merkel smiling and Trump making eye contact while Trudeau, also smiling, stood by. The White House issued its own photo, showing a sitting Trump speaking as Merkel, Abe and Trudeau listened.

Trump and Kim Jong-un arrive in Singapore for historic summit Read more

Helpfully, a German journalist tweeted composites of six contrasting pictures of the same moment – and who released them to the press.

Still, there appears to be more than a little truth to suggestions that Merkel and Trump do not get on. Saturday was not the first awkward moment between them, and the chancellor has made no secret of her disagreement with the president on trade, his rejection of the Iran nuclear deal and his withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement.



In March 2017, Merkel’s first visit to the White House saw Trump either fail to hear or ignore the chancellor’s offer to shake hands. A visit in April this year warranted only a working lunch, several days after a state visit by Macron.