Donald Trump Attacks Giorgia Meloni as Relations Fray Over Pope and Iran War

U.S. President Donald Trump publicly attacked Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in a phone interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera on Tuesday, saying he was "shocked" by her and had been wrong to consider her courageous, marking the sharpest rupture yet between two leaders who had cultivated one of the closest bilateral relationships in the Western alliance. Trump accused Meloni of refusing to support U.S. efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, blocked by Iranian forces, and of failing to back Washington on nuclear disarmament. The confrontation was triggered by Meloni's condemnation of Trump's weekend criticism of Pope Leo XIV as "unacceptable." Trump responded by turning that word back on Meloni herself.

„I'm shocked by her. I thought she had courage. I was wrong.” — Donald Trump via Corriere della Sera

„She is the one who is unacceptable, because she does not care whether Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow Italy up in two minutes if it had the chance.” — Donald Trump via Corriere della Sera

Meloni had been the only head of government from a major European Union country to attend Trump's inauguration ceremony in January 2025, a gesture that underscored the unusually warm personal rapport between the two leaders. As recently as one month before Tuesday's interview, Trump told Corriere della Sera that Meloni was "a great leader" who "always tries to help." The current dispute erupted against the backdrop of the ongoing U.S.-Israel war on Iran, which began on February 28, 2026, and has driven up global energy prices, hitting Italy particularly hard given its heavy dependence on oil and gas imports.

Pope Leo XIV at the center of the falling-out The immediate trigger for the rupture was Meloni's public defense of Pope Leo XIV after Trump attacked the pontiff for his stance on the war in Iran. Meloni had described Trump's criticism of the pope as "unacceptable," a word Trump seized on and redirected at her. Trump argued in the Corriere interview that appeals for peace benefit Iran's leadership and that the pope fundamentally misunderstands the conflict. Trump claimed that had been killed by Iranian authorities in the previous month, a figure he cited to argue that the pope had "no idea" what was happening inside Iran. Trump also said Meloni had not been in telephone contact with him "for a long time" because, in his words, "she doesn't want to help us with NATO" and "she doesn't want to help us get rid of the nuclear weapon." He added that Italy wanted America "to do the job for her" on the Strait of Hormuz, and that Italy pays "the highest energy costs in the world" yet was "not even ready to fight" for the waterway through which its energy supplies flow.

Italian opposition rallies behind Meloni against Trump The attack drew a rare display of cross-party solidarity in Rome, with the leader of the opposition Democratic Party, Elly Schlein, publicly condemning Trump's remarks and expressing solidarity with Meloni despite their political rivalry. Schlein, speaking in the Chamber of Deputies, said Italian citizens would not accept "attacks or threats to the government and our country." Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani also pushed back, writing on X that Meloni was "a woman who never gives up saying what she thinks" and that her comments on Pope Leo XIV reflected what "all of us Italian citizens think." Tajani framed Italy's position as one of principled alliance, stating that unity within the West must be "built with mutual loyalty, respect, and frankness." The White House declined to comment on Trump's reported quotes, and Meloni's office also declined to respond, according to Reuters.

Meloni's Trump ties become a domestic liability The public break carries significant domestic political consequences for Meloni, whose close association with Trump had already become a source of friction at home. According to Reuters, 66 (%) — Italians holding a negative view of Trump of Italians now hold a negative view of Trump, and pollsters have suggested her ties to the White House may have contributed to her defeat in a recent referendum on judicial reform. Trump himself appeared to acknowledge the changed dynamic, saying "she is no longer the same person, and Italy will not be the same country." The episode also fits a broader pattern: Trump has previously clashed publicly with French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez over disagreements on Ukraine, Gaza, trade tariffs, and the Greenland issue. Meloni had until now been conspicuously spared such treatment, making Tuesday's interview a notable escalation in Washington's posture toward European allies.

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