German chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman has not offered any advice on how to interpret a government photographer’s viral shot of the G7 summit.

Steffen Seibert stressed that any impressions are “in the eye of the beholder”.

He tweeted the picture, by German government photographer Jesco Denzel, on Saturday. It shows a standing Mrs Merkel, hands firmly planted on a table, staring down at US president Donald Trump, who is seated with his arms folded.

Angela Merkel
Mrs Merkel has said the G7 summit was challenging (AP)

Mr Seibert told reporters in Berlin that his office “is connecting no interpretation” with the picture.

He added: “This is one scene from the discussions. 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”.