The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has once again lashed out this Saturday against the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, thus reviving the personal confrontation that both have maintained since this week, despite having been allies in the past.
The disagreement erupted on Friday following the dissemination of a photograph of them during the G7 summit held in Évian (France). Trump stated that Meloni had "begged" him to pose with him, while the head of the Italian government responded by calling the US president a liar. In reaction, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, decided to cancel an official trip to the United States after denouncing the "offensive" words of the North American leader.
This Saturday, Trump reiterated his attacks through social media, insisting that Meloni asked him "repeatedly" to take a joint photo because "her popularity in Italy is low, possibly because she rejected the help of the United States, a country that truly loves and protects Italy, to prevent Iran from obtaining or developing a nuclear weapon."
The US leader has once again reproached Italy for its stance during the Iran war. After criticizing that Meloni "did not even allow the United States to use its runways" in the context of the conflict, "which caused a great logistical inconvenience," Trump emphasized that, in his opinion, the United States has emerged victorious from the hostilities and stressed that the prime minister would have lost any chance of mending the personal relationship between them.
"After the military victory of the United States over Iran, she wants to be our friend again to improve her image. No, thank you!" Trump concluded.
MELONI: "MY POPULARITY IS NONE OF HIS BUSINESS"
Meloni, as she had already done on Friday, responded firmly to the US president. She explained that her closeness to Trump has led her to lose support among some of the electorate and stressed that the North American leader should focus on how he is perceived by the citizens of his own country.
"My popularity is none of his business. I suggest he focus on his own," Meloni wrote on her Facebook profile, where she demanded that Trump put an end to these "constant and gratuitous attacks" because "they make no sense."
The Italian leader added that "Regarding my popularity, being your friend has certainly not helped me, nor does it depend on my relationship with you. My popularity depends on my ability to defend the Italian national interest, and that is exactly what I have always done."
Meloni also wanted to remind Trump that the operation of US military bases on Italian territory is determined by agreements "that we have always respected and that cannot be violated" as long as she is in office. "Italy remains a sovereign nation," she stressed.