US President Donald Trump appears to have reignited his dispute with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. On Monday, Trump took to his Truth Social account and shared a photograph of the two leaders from the recently concluded G7 Summit in France, with the caption above the image reading: “Restraining order needed.”
The post did not explicitly state whether President Trump was calling for a restraining order against Meloni, but many interpreted it that way.
Some observers also inferred that the post was mocking Meloni for allegedly “begging” for a picture with Trump at the G7 Summit, a claim Trump had made last month and which Meloni denied.
Trump’s ‘Meloni begged for photo’ claim
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and US President Donald Trump were among several world leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, attending the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France.
Trump later claimed that Meloni had “begged” for a photograph with him at the summit. According to a transcript provided by Italian television channel La7, Trump said Meloni “wanted a picture with me so badly” and suggested he only agreed because he “felt sorry for her,” news agency AFP reported.
He also implied that he was doing her a favour by speaking with her at the summit. A video of the two leaders interacting had surfaced before that. “She’s probably happy I talked to her. I didn’t have to talk to her,” Trump was quoted by the Italian channel as saying.
‘Trump’s remarks totally made up’: Meloni
Meloni, however, expressed that she was “frankly stunned” by Trump’s claims and firmly denied that there was any truth to them.
“I can only say that it’s a shame he doesn’t show the same resolve toward the enemies of the West, toward the enemies of the United States, towards leaders with whom he, on the other hand, is much more accommodating. But there’s one thing he must remember, Italy and I do not beg,” Meloni said.
“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,” she also said.
Trump’s remarks also triggered a diplomatic fallout, with Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani cancelling his planned visit to the United States last month.
