Italy’s prime minister has accused President Trump of fabricating a story about him “begging” him to take a photo at the G7 summit in France.
Published June 19, 2026
The diplomatic spat between US President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has escalated, with Italy’s top diplomat canceling a planned visit to the US.
At issue is Trump’s claim that Meloni “begged” him to take a photo during the Group of Seven (G7) meeting in France earlier this week.
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“She’s probably happy that I got to talk to her. I didn’t have to talk to her,” Trump reportedly told Italy’s La7 network. The station only released the Italian dubbed version of the interview, not the original English version.
“She begged me to take a picture with her. She wanted to take a picture with me. I wouldn’t have done it, but I felt bad for her.”
On Friday, Meloni posted a video responding to President Trump’s statement, saying: This means that certain matters require immediate attention.
“What Donald Trump said is completely fabricated. Frankly, I’m surprised,” she said. “I don’t understand why the president of the United States would behave like this towards his allies. After all, this is not the first time something like this has happened.”
Meloni, the leader of a far-right party that campaigned on an anti-immigration platform, has been seen as one of Trump’s biggest supporters in Europe.
She met President Trump at his Mar-a-Lago mansion after his 2024 election victory and attended his inauguration in January 2025.
However, during Trump’s second term, the two sides diverged over several issues, including support for Ukraine during the Russian invasion, the U.S.-Israel war on Iran, Trump’s threat to occupy Danish Greenland, and criticism of Pope Leo.
Meloni said in the video that it was “unfortunate” that President Trump did not show “the same commitment to the enemies of the West and to the enemies of the United States” that he had shown in his comments to her.
She accused the US president of being “much more tolerant” of enemies than of allies.
“But there’s one thing he has to remember: Italy and I don’t beg,” she said.
Shortly after Meloni posted the video, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced he was canceling a weekend trip to the United States where he was scheduled to attend a business forum in Miami, Florida and meet with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
He criticized President Trump’s reported remarks, calling them “serious and offensive.” Several other government officials also attended.
Justice Minister Carlo Nordio suggested that President Trump’s comments dishonor the legacy of American soldiers who died during World War II.
“Thousands of crosses marking the graves of American soldiers who died liberating us from Nazi-fascist dictatorship did not deserve such a painful blow to our fraternal bonds,” Nordio wrote on X.
Defense Minister Guido Crossetto said he believed Meloni would not beg for a photo “even if he was not threatened.”
“This kind of joke is not good for anyone. It’s not good for the United States, it’s not good for Italy, it’s not good for the alliance,” he said.
The White House did not immediately respond to Meloni’s comments.
