Italy’s Meloni says Trump ‘totally invented’ story that she begged him for photo

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one. Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription The View From India Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective. First Day First Show News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming. Today's Cache Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day. Science For All The weekly newsletter from science writers takes the jargon out of science and puts the fun in! Data Point Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers THEdge At the cutting edge of education and careers Health Matters Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there Gender Agenda Stories from beyond the binary. The Hindu On Books Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features. Published - June 19, 2026 06:18 pm IST - ROME U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, on June 17, 2026. Photo: Italian Prime Ministry/Handout via Reuters Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni accused her one-time close ally Donald Trump of fabricating a story about her on Friday, after the U.S. President told an Italian TV channel that she had “begged” him to take a photo with her at a G7 summit. Meloni said she was “astonished” by his comments, which were “completely made up”. She also chided him for acting with far greater deference to the enemies of the West than he does towards old, established allies. Underscoring how much Mr. Trump’s comments have angered Ms. Meloni’s government, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced he was cancelling a planned visit to the U.S. next week. The latest exchange marks a sharp deterioration in ties, coming just days after signs emerged at the G7 summit that the two right-wing leaders had steadied a previously strained relationship following tensions this year over the war on Iran. Video from the event in France showed Ms. Meloni and Mr. Trump deep in conversation, sitting side-by-side on a small sofa, but the U.S. leader suggested he had merely indulged her by chatting with her. “She’s probably happy I talked to her. I didn’t have to talk to her,” Mr. Trump was quoted as saying by La7 TV channel in a brief interview, after he himself asked the journalist about Italy’s prime minister. “She begged me to take a picture with her. She wanted a picture with me so badly. I wouldn’t have taken it, but I felt sorry for her,” Mr. Trump said, according to La7’s translation. The channel did not release the original audio, just a dubbed version. Ms. Meloni responded: “Donald Trump’s statements are completely made up. I am frankly astonished. I don’t know why the president of the United States behaves like this towards his allies: it is not the first time, moreover.” “I can only say it is disappointing that he does not show the same determination with the enemies of the West and of the United States, whose leaders he instead treats with far greater indulgence,” she said, adding: “There is one thing he should remember: neither I nor Italy ever beg.” Announcing the cancellation of his planned U.S. trip, Foreign Minister Tajani said on X: “The serious and offensive words of President Trump towards Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni offend the whole of Italy.” One of Ms. Meloni’s closest political allies, who usually shuns the media spotlight, struck out at Mr. Trump using a tone that would have been unthinkable beforehand. “It is unclear whether out of intent or ineptitude [Trump] is wrecking the historic relations between the United States and Europe,” Giovanbattista Fazzolari, undersecretary to the prime minister’s office, said in a statement. “With his inappropriate outbursts, he has managed no easy feat, to make the United States unpopular across the entire European continent, damaging not only Europe but above all the United States,” he added. Ms. Meloni was once a vocal supporter of Mr. Trump and was the only European leader to attend his inauguration in 2025. However, she criticised himthis year for lashing out at Pope Leo over his condemnation of the Iran conflict. That in turn prompted a blunt rebuke from the U.S. President, who accused her of lacking courage. Donald Trump / Italy / usa cricket / USA Copyright© 2026, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. Terms & conditions | Institutional Subscriber Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle

Italy’s Meloni says Trump ‘totally invented’ story that she begged him for photo

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Italy’s Meloni says Trump ‘totally invented’ story that she begged him for photo

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