Trump Renews Feud With Meloni Over G7 Photo, Citing Italy's March Base Refusal

3 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 20

Trump escalated his clash with Giorgia Meloni on Saturday, saying she repeatedly sought a G7 photo with him and now “wants to be friends again” after a preliminary U.S.-Iran deal.
In the same post, he accused Italy of failing to cooperate during the Iran war, saying Meloni would not let U.S. forces use Italian landing strips or runways.
That complaint tracks Italy’s March decision to deny American bombers access to a Sicily base without parliamentary approval, despite Italy’s role as a key U.S. logistics hub.
The dispute began with Trump’s interview on Italy’s La7 network, where he said Meloni “begged” for the photo; Meloni called the claim “completely fabricated,” and Italy’s foreign minister canceled a U.S. trip.
Trump also tied the spat to NATO burden-sharing ahead of next month’s summit in Turkey, reviving his criticism that allies do too little despite U.S. defense spending.