US President Donald Trump said on July 7 that his relationship with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has deteriorated due to their differences over Iran, as the two leaders attended a NATO summit. Italy's government has since declared it will no longer respond to what it called Trump's provocative remarks targeting Meloni.
Speaking to reporters during the summit, Trump acknowledged that his ties with Meloni had "gotten a little worse" after she declined to assist the United States on the Iran file. "She refused to get involved, and that made my relationship with her a little worse. But I like her. I think she's a decent person. But I think she made a mistake," Trump said.
The remarks came two days after Trump shared a photo of Meloni on social media on July 5, showing her looking up at him from a close distance, with the caption: "A restraining order is needed." The post was widely seen as a further public slight ahead of their joint appearance at the NATO summit.
In response, Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on July 7 that Rome would no longer engage with Trump's provocative statements. "We will not respond anymore to President Trump's provocations," Tajani said, signaling a deliberate de-escalation by the Italian government.
Belgian Defense Minister Ludivine Dedonder, in an interview with US media, also publicly urged Washington to "leave Meloni alone," emphasizing that the Italian prime minister has remained closely aligned with allied positions on NATO affairs.
The exchange has cast a shadow over the US-Italy relationship, with Meloni's office offering no further comment on the matter.
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