Italy is drawing a line under its public spat with US President Donald Trump, with ministers saying Rome will not answer any further personal jabs at Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as the government seeks to shield bilateral ties that have come under strain in recent weeks.
Ms Meloni had long been viewed as one of Mr Trump’s closest partners in Europe, but the relationship soured last month after he told Italian TV channel La7 that she had “begged” him to take a photo with her at a G7 summit in France.
She rejected the allegation and accused him of making up the story.
Now, with both leaders set to attend the NATO summit in Ankara today and tomorrow, Mr Trump revived the feud by posting on Truth Social a picture of Ms Meloni looking up at him alongside the caption “RESTRAINING ORDER NEEDED”.
Donald Trump claims he was indulging Georgia Meloni by chatting to her at the G7 summit
The fresh swipe immediately fueled questions over how Ms Meloni might respond, and whether the exchange could spill over into tensions among allies at the closely watched NATO meeting.
Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Italy would not be drawn into a back-and-forth and would keep working to preserve stable relations with Washington, no matter who occupies the White House.
“Trump speaks for himself. We have a US president who loves to provoke, especially on social media. We have decided to stop responding to these remarks,” Mr Tajani told La Stampa newspaper.
Say hello with a smile
Other senior government figures, including Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, echoed that approach when asked about any possible reply, while Ms Meloni’s office declined to comment on how she would behave when meeting Mr Trump in Ankara.
Still, a source close to her, who declined to be named, dismissed any suggestion the Italian leader would snub Mr Trump, saying she knew how to manage such moments and would instead greet him “with a smile”.
Ms Meloni previously backed Mr Trump enthusiastically and, in 2025, became the only European leader to attend his inauguration, aiming to build a close channel with him rooted in their shared right-wing political outlook.
Read more:
Meloni turns from Trump whisperer to Trump critic
But she broke with him this year after he lashed out at Pope Leo over the pontiff’s condemnation of the Iran conflict. That criticism prompted a blunt response from the US president, who accused her of lacking courage.
In the wake of the public row, Italian media speculated the government might boycott a traditional US Independence Day celebration.
Instead, in what was widely read as a gesture of goodwill, several senior government figures attended the event at the ambassador’s residence in Rome last week.
Mr Trump’s comments sparked sharp backlash in Italy, with some opposition parties also voicing solidarity with Ms Meloni.
Italy’s Il Foglio newspaper ridiculed the Truth Social caption on its front page, printing a picture of the US president with Russia’s Vladimir Putin under the same words: “RESTRAINING ORDER NEEDED”.
