Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, one of President Trump's strongest allies in Europe, is suddenly putting daylight between herself and him, reports Politico. "As is normal among allies, we must clearly say even when we do not agree," Meloni told the Italian parliament on Thursday. She spelled out examples, including the Iran war, Trump's tariffs, his disparagement of European soldiers in Afghanistan, and the aggressive US stance on Greenland. "The West stands on two legs: the European and the American one," she said. "If they don't move in the same direction, it risks paralysis."
Meloni also highlighted for the first time publicly Rome's refusal to let a US military aircraft bound for the Middle East land at the Sigonella air base in Sicily, underscoring that Italy did not back or participate in the war in Iran. Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal notes that Meloni also issued a rare criticism of Trump after his remarks about wiping out the Iranian civilization. "It is crucial to clearly distinguish between the responsibilities of a regime and the fate of millions of ordinary citizens," she said. "Iran's civilian population cannot and must not pay the price for the sins of its leaders."
The recalibration comes with Meloni reeling from a stinging defeat in a referendum last month widely seen as a judgment on her leadership. In a New York Times essay, Anna Momigliano, editor of the Italian newspaper Corriera della Serra, puts it this way: As Trump's "popularity craters to new lows in Europe, and the continent begins to find a backbone in its dealings with him, Ms. Meloni is discovering that being a favorite of the U.S. president can be a liability, too."
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