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G7 Photo Row
A diplomatic row between United States President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni escalated after Trump told Italian TV that Meloni “begged” him for a photograph during the Group of Seven meeting in France earlier in the week.
Meloni responded by posting that “Donald Trump’s statements are completely fabricated. I am frankly stunned,” and she said she did not know why the US president behaved that way toward allies.
Italy’s top diplomat then cancelled an upcoming trip to the US, where Antonio Tajani was scheduled to attend a business forum in Miami, Florida and meet with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The dispute played out against a backdrop of earlier tensions tied to Trump’s second term, including support for Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion and the US-Israeli war with Iran, as well as Trump’s criticism of Pope Leo.
In the BBC account, the episode followed Trump’s phone interview with Italy’s La7, where he alleged: “She begged me to take a photo with her; I felt sorry for her.”
Italy Pushback
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani cancelled his weekend trip to the US after calling Trump’s reported statements “serious and offensive,” and the BBC reported that Meloni said the comments were entirely “made-up”.
Meloni told her followers that “Donald Trump’s declarations are totally invented,” and she said it was “unfortunate he doesn’t show the same determination towards the west’s enemies.”
The BBC described how Italian politicians across the spectrum rallied around Meloni, including Filippo Sensi, a senator on the left from the opposition Democratic Party, who said no-one had the right to speak to an Italian prime minister in such an arrogant tone.
In the same BBC report, Five Star Movement leader Giuseppe Conte said Italy “doesn’t deserve to find itself so blatantly humiliated,” while Matteo Salvini from the League said, “Whoever attacks Giorgia, attacks all of us.”
The Hill also reported Tajani’s cancellation message, quoting him as saying Trump’s words “offend all of Italy,” and it tied the dispute to La7’s dubbed broadcast rather than the original English audio.
What’s at Stake
The fallout threatened to widen the rift between the two leaders after Meloni’s earlier close ties with Trump, including the fact that she was the sole European leader to attend his inauguration in January 2025.
NPR reported that Meloni said Trump’s story was fabricated and that “Italy and I do not beg,” while it noted that La7 aired only a dubbed Italian translation, leaving independent verification of Trump’s exact words in English impossible.
In the BBC account, the exchange was framed as an indication of how far their earlier close ties had frayed, with the BBC adding that Trump and Meloni had been seen in close conversation at the G7 summit at Evian-les-Bains in eastern France.
The BBC also said diplomats pointed to European leaders showing more resolve after the US threatened Greenland earlier this year, and it described renewed talk of Europe forging a more strategically autonomous path.
For the immediate diplomatic calendar, Forbes reported that Tajani cancelled his June 21 visit to the US and was slated to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, while the dispute remained unresolved because the White House did not immediately respond to Meloni’s comments.
