Meloni rebukes Trump over alleged G7 photo claim
Italy’s prime minister denied an alleged Trump claim that she sought a G7 photo, escalating a public split between former allies.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
3 min read
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni publicly accused President Trump of inventing a claim that she had pleaded for a photograph with him at the G7 summit. The dispute matters because it has turned a once-close relationship between two right-wing leaders into an open diplomatic clash.
Meloni responded Friday in a video posted on X, saying Trump’s alleged remarks were false and expressing anger at how he was treating an ally. She said, “Italy and I do not beg,” and criticized Trump for what she described as a softer posture toward adversaries of the West and the United States.
The comments Meloni rejected were reported by Italian broadcaster La7, which aired an Italian-dubbed version of a phone interview between Trump and Italian journalist Daniele Compatengelo. According to La7’s translation, Trump said Meloni was probably pleased that he spoke with her and that she “begged” to be photographed with him.
NPR reported that it could not independently confirm Trump’s exact words because La7 released only a dubbed Italian version of the audio. NPR said Compatengelo did not immediately respond to a request for the original recording, and the White House did not immediately answer NPR’s request for comment on the accuracy of the reported remarks.
The exchange followed a three-day G7 summit in Evian, France, where Trump and Meloni appeared together in several photo opportunities. A photograph from June 16 showed Trump speaking with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as Meloni looked on during the meeting, according to Getty Images.
Italy’s government reacted sharply. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on X that he was canceling a scheduled weekend trip to the United States, describing the alleged comments as serious and offensive to Italy.
Italian politicians across party lines also defended Meloni. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini wrote on X that an attack on Meloni was an attack on all Italians. Matteo Renzi, a center-left former prime minister and Meloni critic, called Trump’s alleged statements “horrifying” and urged Meloni to break with Trump, saying in a lengthy post on X that “the global right has failed.”
Meloni, who became Italy’s first female prime minister in 2022, had been viewed as one of Trump’s closest partners among European leaders. NPR reported that she was the only European Union leader invited to Trump’s second inauguration in January 2025.
The relationship began to sour earlier this year after Trump attacked Pope Leo XIV on Truth Social following the pontiff’s criticism of U.S. military action in Iran, according to NPR. Trump wrote that Pope Leo was “WEAK on Crime” and “terrible for Foreign Policy,” and said he did not want a pope who believed Iran should have a nuclear weapon.
Meloni called those attacks on the pope unacceptable. Trump later told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that he had thought Meloni had courage but had been wrong, according to NPR.
This story draws on original reporting from NPR.