Donald Trump’s approach to social media is often – how shall we put this? –unorthodox, but the president seems to have outdone himself this time.
On Friday afternoon, Trump shared a ‘Game Of Thrones’-style meme that depicted himself against a grey background.
Written over the top are the words “sanctions are coming”, a passable play on the drama’s frequently-uttered line “winter is coming”.
Now, Trump’s Twitter feed often throws up unexpected posts but this? A Game Of Thrones meme? Of himself?
It didn’t take long for baffled Twitter users to begin responding, with most reactions falling into the “WTF?” category:
Arya Stark (well, Maisie Williams) even got involved too, along with the writer of the books, George R R Martin:
‘Game Of Thrones’ creators HBO aren’t too happy with the president’s meme either, judging by the statement issued they issued to CNBC.
“We were not aware of this messaging and would prefer our trademark not be misappropriated for political purposes,” they said.
And as many ‘Game Of Thrones’ fans have pointed out, winter’s arrival in Westeros is not exactly something to celebrate:
This tweet could therefore be taken as confirmation that the president has never seen Game Of Thrones.
His “sanctions are coming” tagline is a reference to the White House’s decision to reinstate sanctions on Iran that were lifted under a 2015 nuclear deal.
The sanctions cover Iran’s shipping, financial and energy sectors, and are the second batch of penalties re-imposed since Trump withdrew from the deal in May.
The sanctions that will come into force on Monday penalise countries that do not stop importing Iranian oil and foreign companies that do business with blacklisted Iranian entities.
Eight countries, identified by officials as US allies, such as Italy, India, Japan and South Korea, will receive temporary waivers allowing them to continue to import Iranian petroleum products for a limited period.