Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni meets President-elect Donald J. Trump for an informal meeting on Saturday. Has gone to meet Trump at his Florida golf club.
The trip to Mar-a-Lago comes just days before Ms. Meloni is scheduled to welcome President Biden to Rome for an official visit to Italy and the Vatican on Jan. 9 to 12.
On Saturday she was seen in the Grand Ballroom. According to pool reports, Mr Trump said he was having dinner with Ms Meloni, whom he called “a fantastic woman”, adding, “She has really taken Europe and everyone else by storm.”
He, along with some potential members of a future Trump administration, including nominees Marco Rubio for Secretary of State and Scott Besant for Treasury, then watched a screening of the film titled “The Eastman Dilemma: Lawfare or Justice.”
Ms. Meloni and Mr. Trump have expressed mutual admiration in the past, and her visit is one of the first few visits by a foreign leader to Florida since the president-elect. The meeting reinforces the hopes of Ms Meloni’s supporters that the conservative Italian prime minister will become Mr Trump’s ally in Europe.
That role would include mediating tensions between most other European leaders and Mr Trump, who has threatened to start a trade war with the continent as well as reduce US support for Ukraine in its war with some NATO countries and Russia. Has given.
The agenda of the meeting was not clear on Saturday night, but observers expected the two leaders to discuss those issues.
Another possible topic, according to observers, is the detention in Iran of Cecilia Sala, a prominent Italian journalist. This came days after Italy arrested an Iranian man suspected of providing drone components to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards at the request of the United States. Iran regularly detains foreigners and dual citizens in exchange for money and people.
A person briefed on the meeting said Ms Meloni had pushed aggressively for it.
He also has good relations with Elon Musk, who his supporters hope will strengthen his international position after Mr Trump becomes president.
Since being elected, Mr. Trump has welcomed Mar-a-Lago Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor OrbanChampion of “illiberal democracy”, as well as Argentina’s flamboyant right-wing president, Javier Meili. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau became the first Group of Seven leader to meet with Mr Trump in Florida after the election, after threatening to impose tariffs on Canada.
maggie haberman Contributed to the reporting.