US TV network HBO is not too happy that Donald Trump has co-opted a well-known phrase from their blockbuster fantasy series Game of Thrones to make a political point.

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The US president tweeted an image of himself with the message "Sanctions Are Coming" – a twist on the Thrones slogan "Winter Is Coming – in the show's familiar typeface, along with the date November 5, which is when American sanctions against Iran will come back into effect following Trump’s decision to ditch a deal suspending them.

But HBO is not keen on the association, or with Trump's use of what it suggests in a tweet is "trademark misuse".

Speaking to news service CNBC, the network added: “We were not aware of this messaging and would prefer our trademark not be misappropriated for political purposes.”

As Game of Thrones fans will be aware, Dothraki is the language spoken by the people of the same name in the series, and in George RR Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire novels.

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The sanctions on Iran come back into effect just one day before the US mid-term elections, which could have a major impact on how long President Trump will continue to hang on to his own Iron Throne.

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