Donald Trump appears not to have let go of his irritation toward Giorgia Meloni. The US president has once again targeted Italy’s prime minister with a post on the social network Truth Social, where he published a photo of her accompanied by the words: “A restraining order is needed.”
The reaction came shortly before the NATO summit, which is being held on July 7 and 8 in Ankara, and is seen as the latest chapter in tensions between Washington and Rome. It is not the first time Trump has attacked Meloni. After the G7 summit in Evian, he had claimed that the Italian prime minister had begged him to take a photo together. Meloni responded with a video on social media, declaring: “Neither I nor Italy beg anyone.”
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The latest post is also expected to affect the atmosphere of the NATO summit, where leaders of member states will discuss the future of the alliance and increasing defense spending. For weeks, the governments of member countries have been negotiating to avoid clashes over the goal of each state investing 5% of Gross Domestic Product in the defense sector.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto has expressed optimism that the summit will pass without major problems, underlining that the commitments undertaken will be respected and that the meeting is expected to be short. Nevertheless, he acknowledged that Trump remains an unpredictable factor.
The American president, who is also expected to hold a meeting in Ankara with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, has repeatedly attacked European allies over what he considers a lack of contribution to defense and security.
At the same time, several international media outlets, including Politico, report that Trump’s language toward European allies is aimed at increasing pressure for more investment in defense, from which the American arms industry would also benefit.
