'I am not anti-American': Italian PM Meloni hits back at Trump amid escalating rift

WASHINGTON, DC: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Monday, June 29, that she is neither "anti-American" nor "kneeling" before Washington, advocating for a united West as a public feud with President Donald Trump continues to escalate following the G7 Summit in France.

Her remarks come amid a public spat with US President Donald Trump after he suggested that the Italian leader “begged for photographs" with him during the recently concluded G7 Summit in France.

Meloni clarifies her position 

“I am not anti-American today; I was not kneeling yesterday. I am a person who believes that the West is stronger united, who believes that Italy is stronger in a united West, and has worked and continues to work for this", Meloni said while speaking on ’10 minuti’ on Rete 4, according to Italian news agency Adnkronos.

The Italian leader added that solid relationships require honesty. "After that, however, solid relationships are also based on frankness, and I am a frank person," she said.

Trump claimed Meloni 'begged' for a photo

Just days after the G7 Summit in Evian, France, Trump said in a Truth Social post that the Italian leader had “asked, over and over, for a picture” with him during the gathering.

"She wanted a photo with me so badly. I might not have done it, but I felt sorry for her," Trump said, adding that he believed Meloni's declining domestic popularity was tied to her position on the war in West Asia.

The Italian leader was quick to hit back.

Expressing disappointment over Trump’s words, Meloni said the statements were “completely made-up".

“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 had said in a post on ‘X’.

Intensifying her attack and rejecting allegations that her political positioning in Italy had to do with her relations with the US President, she added: “President Trump, these constant, unprovoked attacks are senseless. As for my popularity, being your friend certainly has not helped it, nor does it depend on my relationship with you."

Italian foreign minister cancels US trip amid fallout

The dispute has had diplomatic consequences.

Italy's Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Antonio Tajani, announced he was canceling a planned visit to Miami in response to Trump's comments. "The serious and offensive words of President Trump towards Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni offend all of Italy. For this reason, I have decided to cancel my visit to the United States," Tajani wrote on X.

The friction between the two leaders has been building for weeks, rooted in Rome's reluctance to fully back Washington's military campaign against Iran.

Trump has previously criticized Italy and other NATO allies for what he described as insufficient support for US military action against Tehran, a dynamic that has continued to strain relations even as Meloni has sought to position Italy as a stabilizing voice within a unified Western alliance.