Liz Truss posed in a military gear and a heavy-duty tank during a visit to some British troops in Estonia on Tuesday – and it didn’t take long for the jokes to start rolling in.
The foreign secretary was gathering with Nato allies in Latvia to discuss Russia’s military build-up near Ukraine’s border which has western nations concerned.
During her trip, she accused Moscow of “malign activity” in the Balkans, and said Russian president Vladimir Putin would be making a “strategic mistake” if he were to lead an invasion into Ukraine.
Truss also dismissed Moscow’s claims that Nato was acting proactively.
As part of this public appearance, she visited UK troops in Estonia and briefly jumped in a tank for a photograph – only for it become one of the main takeaways from her trip, according to the foreign secretary’s online critics.
Some accounts mocked her previous PR disasters, such as the time she continually spoke about cheese imports and pork markets...
....while some people couldn’t decide who she was trying to emulate.
Her critics also wondered what this said about the UK as a whole...
...while others thought the photo op from Truss was part of a wider ploy.
Her words aimed at Putin did not land well either.
Few thought this imagery would elevate her position in politics, and compared her to Mr Burns from The Simpsons.
Some Twitter accounts even mocked Truss for appearing in a tank after promising “we will not roll over” in the ongoing UK-France dispute over fishing.
