Giorgia Meloni: Italy to Join Donald Trump's Peace Council as Observer

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been working intensively in recent days to maintain Italy's role as a bridge between Europe and the United States under Donald Trump. A key element of this strategy is the announcement that Italy will join the Peace Council (Board of Peace) as an observer nation. This initiative, aimed at resolving the conflict in the Gaza Strip, evokes mixed feelings in Brussels, but Meloni argues that maintaining dialogue with Washington is essential for transatlantic security. The Italian Prime Minister has chosen to attend the summit in Addis Ababa, forgoing the prestigious Munich Security Conference, which German media, such as the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, interpret as a signal of shifting priorities in Rome's foreign policy. The Italian-American alliance is based on a lasting treaty foundation from 1948, and Italy hosts key NATO bases on its territory, including the Sigonella base in Sicily and the command in Naples, making it a strategic US partner in the Mediterranean basin.Meloni's stance stands in clear opposition to the actions of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who represents a more skeptical attitude towards White House policy. Meloni openly distances herself from his criticism, revealing cracks within the European front regarding the new American administration. The Italian Prime Minister leverages her ideological affinity with the MAGA movement to position herself as the only European leader capable of genuine dialogue with Trump. The Peace Council thus becomes a testing ground for Italian diplomacy, which must prove that observer status does not mean breaking the community solidarity of the European Union. Experts point out that Meloni is practicing Realpolitik, trying to avoid Italy's marginalization in case of a potential weakening of trade ties between the EU and the USA. „Italy will participate as an observer nation in the Peace Council, which is a way to sustain difficult transatlantic relations.” — Giorgia Meloni However, the attempt to reconcile fire with water – that is, the interests of Washington with the guidelines of Brussels – may prove difficult in the long run, especially if Trump demands more decisive declarations of loyalty from allies at the expense of European integration. Editorial offices in France and Germany are observing this Italian "acrobatic" diplomacy with growing concern, fearing that Rome could become a Trojan horse for American interests in Europe.

Relations between the USA and Europe have experienced numerous crises, for example in 2003 during the invasion of Iraq, when countries on the continent were divided into opponents and supporters of the American intervention.