Trump G7 photo: Merkel's spokesman reveals German chancellor's thoughts on iconic image of president and world leaders

Interpretation of now famous snap is 'in the eye of the beholder', says Steffen Seibert

The photograph from the summit has become a viral hit on social media (Jesco Denzel)

German chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman has insisted any interpretation of a government photographer's viral snap of the G7 summit is “in the eye of the beholder”.

Steffen Seibert, head of the German state information agency, tweeted the now famous image taken by photographer Jesco Denzel on Saturday.

It shows Ms Merkel, hands planted on the table, staring down president Donald Trump as he sits with his armed crossed, surrounded by other world leaders and dignitaries, including the unimpressed-looking Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe.

The image has been viewed by many as a perfect encapsulation of the mood at the Quebec summit, which was overshadowed by disagreements over Mr Trump’s decision to impose higher tariffs on aluminium and steel, prompting various viral spin-offs.

However, Mr Seibert is not offering any advice on how the photograph should be construed, maintaining the chancellor's office “is connecting no interpretation” with the picture.

“This is one scene from the discussions,” he told reporters in Berlin on Monday.

“The photographer had only very brief access to these discussions, and so we only had very few pictures, which were all very similar.”

Mr Seibert noted that “other photographers captured other scenes,” alluding to the fact the meeting had been captured from various different angles by several representatives.

German journalist, Fabian Reinbold, tweeted a composite of photographs released of the discussions by delegations from six of the G7 nations.

Some, most notably the photograph by a member of Mr Trump’s team, presents a more jovial atmosphere than appears in the shot released by German authorities.

Regardless of true nature of the discussions captured at the in the image, Ms Merkel has made no secret of her opposition to the president’s trade policies.

The pair have also voiced their disagreement in the past over Mr Trump’s decision to pull out of the deal to limit Iran’s nuclear weapons programme and his move to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accord.

Ms Merkel took part in a low-key trip to Washington in April, a brief “working visit,” in which the two leaders spent little more than three hours together.

The meeting was in stark contrast to the state visit of Emmauel Macron less than a week earlier, when Mr Trump was pictured embracing the French president on multiple occasions.

Additional reporting by agencies