Brussels – “This attack is neither political nor personal. I don’t even know how to describe it.” This is how Pedro Sánchez, the Spanish Prime Minister, commented on remarks by US President Donald Trump about Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Today (19 June), Trump appeared on the programme “L’Aria che tira” on La7, giving his views on the G7 summit held from 15 to 17 June in Évian, France. “She begged me to have my photo taken with her; I felt sorry for her,” said the US President, referring to Meloni. He added: “She’s probably glad I spoke to her! I wasn’t obliged to speak to her.”
Sánchez took the opportunity of the press conference at the close of the European Council to express his solidarity with the Prime Minister, adding that he had done so “in private as well, during the summit of Member States.” French President Emmanuel Macron, too, at the end of the summit, said he was “surprised by Trump’s attack on Meloni,” explaining that he would discuss the matter with the Prime Minister at their meeting next Thursday (25 June) at the 36th Franco-Italian summit in Antibes.
Trump’s comments clash with Meloni’s statements at the G7, where the Prime Minister had claimed that the difficulties in the relationship between the two had now been overcome. “We’ve always been friends,” she had joked. And at a press conference the day before yesterday, she described their relationship as “unchanged.”
The Prime Minister’s response to Trump’s interview came as early as this morning, in a video recorded on the sidelines of the meetings in Brussels. “Certain things deserve an immediate response: Donald Trump’s statements are completely fabricated; frankly, I am stunned,” she said. “I do not know why the President of the United States behaves this way towards his own allies; after all, this is not the first time it has happened. I can only say that it is a pity he does not show the same resolve towards the West’s enemies, towards the enemies of the United States, towards leaders with whom he proves to be far more accommodating. But there is one thing he must remember: Italy and I never beg!”
Italy and I never beg. pic.twitter.com/sTpKlqWB67
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) 19 June 2026
The Prime Minister was summoned by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani then decided to cancel his planned visit to the United States on 21 and 22 June following “President Trump’s serious and offensive remarks towards Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni,” which “offend the whole of Italy.”
English version by the Translation Service of WithubPresident Trump’s serious and offensive remarks directed at Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are an insult to the whole of Italy. For this reason, I have decided to cancel my visit to the United States, which was scheduled for 21 and 22 June.
— Antonio Tajani (@Antonio_Tajani)
