Trump and Meloni: From close relations to a transatlantic crisis
The relationship between Trump and Meloni was typified by warm handshakes and even warmer words until the US leader did something considered by most Italians to be unthinkable: he criticised the pope.
The unexpected public rift between the two leaders, who cultivated one of the closest transatlantic relationships over the past year, erupted after Trump criticised the pontiff for his anti-war stance on Iran.
"I thought she had courage, but I was wrong," Trump told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera on Tuesday.
Trump previously called Meloni "one of the real leaders of the world" and "full of energy, fantastic", while Meloni said she was able to speak to him "frankly even when we disagree".
It all seemed to be going so well until Trump did something that, for many Italians, is regarded as sacrilege: he lambasted none other than the Holy Father.
Trump said he did not think Pope Leo XIV was "doing a very good job" because he was "weak on crime" and suggested the pontiff should "stop catering to the radical left," also stating, "We don't like a pope who says it's OK to have a nuclear weapon."
Trump's comments came after Pope Leo XIV openly criticised the US intervention in Iran from day one, stating just this weekend that a "delusion of omnipotence" is fuelling it.
Wherever you sit on the political spectrum in Italy, the idea of questioning, much less criticising, the pontiff is a red line.
Meloni on Monday called Trump's criticism of the pope "unacceptable".
"The pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and it is right and normal for him to call for peace and to condemn all forms of war," Meloni said.
She added she would not feel comfortable living in a society where "religious leaders do as they are told by politicians".
Trump pushed back, telling the Italian daily, "She's unacceptable because she doesn't mind that Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow up Italy in two minutes if they had the chance."
Parallel to this, it emerged that at the end of March, Italy had refused a request from the US military for aircraft to land at the Naval Air Station Sigonella on the island of Sicily, falling in line with countries like Spain and France that refused Washington's requests to overfly their territory before continuing towards the Middle East and fighting the war in Iran.
And in another move likely to annoy the White House, Meloni announced on Tuesday that Italy had suspended the automatic renewal of its defence agreement with Israel, which involves the exchange of military equipment and technology research.
But after Trump's jibes at the pope, can the relationship ever be repaired or will it be for conservative Meloni, dead and buried for good? Whatever happens from here, let's take a look at how one of the closest transatlantic relationships developed.
December 2024: First face-to-face in Paris
The first meaningful encounter between Trump and Meloni dates back to late 2024 and the reopening ceremony of Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral.
It was a brief meeting, in a very crowded multilateral context, but it was enough to leave an impression on the US president, who described the Italian premier as a "real live-wire".
Trump gushed that Meloni was "full of energy (and) fantastic" according to people who were present at the meeting and who saw the encounter as a sign of warmer ties to come as Trump was still at that point president-elect and had yet to start his second term.
January 2025: Mar-a-Lago and the Sala crisis
In the middle of the drama surrounding the kidnapping of journalist Cecilia Sala in Iran, Meloni flew to Florida for a meeting with Trump at his Florida Mar-a-Lago residence.
The visit was brief, not preceded by any official announcement, and was interpreted as a strong political gesture at a time of heightened international tension.
According to sources close to the president, Trump was impressed and described Meloni as a leader who has "really taken Europe by storm".
“This is very exciting,” Trump told a group at Mar-a-Lago. “I’m here with a fantastic woman, the prime minister of Italy.”
In the days that followed, Trump publicly praised Meloni for flying all the way to the US just to spend a few hours with him.
January 2025: One of the few Europeans at the inauguration
Meloni was one of the few European leaders invited to Trump's inauguration in Washington. Her presence there was interpreted as having significant political weight, particularly given that so many other European leaders had been sidelined.
Just days later in Davos, Trump hinted at the possibility of a personal and political relationship with the Italian premier. "I like her a lot, let's see what happens," he said.
His praise for Meloni stood in stark contrast to his general belligerence towards the EU as a whole, slamming the 27-member bloc as treating "the United States very badly" against a backdrop of ongoing trade tensions.
April 2025: The political peak of the relationship?
An official visit to the White House represented, for some, the high point of the relationship between the two leaders, a meeting accompanied by a strong media presence and notably more personal tones.
Trump saved his warmest words for a social media post after the meeting: "She loves her country, and the impression she left on everyone was fantastic!"
During the White House talks, Meloni invited Trump to visit Italy and proposed an expanded format with European leaders to consolidate a direct political channel between Washington and Brussels.
Diplomatic sources described the meeting as "solid on the political level and surprisingly relaxed on the personal level" and generally harmonious.
April 2025: First informal talks at the Vatican
At the funeral of Pope Francis, the two meet briefly in the Vatican. The context was considered highly symbolic and significant, with numerous world leaders present.
Sources present reported a quick but significant exchange, in which international affairs were briefly touched upon, a fleeting meeting that appeared to confirm the continuity of the direct channel between the two.
Source: Euronews
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