Giorgia Meloni says Donald Trump ‘made up’ claim she begged him for a photo

Meloni has hit out at former ally Trump over ‘completely made up’ claim in an Instagram post (Picture: Instagram)

Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni furiously accused Donald Trump of telling a ‘completely made up’ story about her – before hitting out at the US president for pandering to enemies of the West.

Trump told an Italian TV channel that Meloni had ‘begged’ him to take a photo with her at a G7 summit, a claim angrily denied by the Italian leader.

Video from the event in France showed Meloni and Trump deep in conversation, but the US leader suggested he had merely indulged her by chatting with her.

‘She’s probably happy I talked to her. I didn’t have to talk to her,’ Trump was quoted as saying by La7 TV channel.

Donald Trump talks with Keir Starmer last year as Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni looks on(Picture: Reuters)

‘She begged me to take a picture with her. She wanted a picture with me so badly. I wouldn’t have taken it, but I felt sorry for her.’

Meloni said she was ‘astonished’ by his comments and accused Trump of paying greater respect to enemies of the West than established allies.

She said: ‘Donald Trump’s statements are completely made up. I am frankly astonished. I don’t know why the president of the United States behaves like this towards his allies: it is not the first time, moreover.

‘I can only say it is disappointing that he does not show the same determination with the enemies of the West and of the United States, whose leaders he instead treats with far greater indulgence. There is one thing he should remember: neither I nor Italy ever beg.’

Donald Trump was criticised by Meloni after posting bizarre image amid spat with Pope (Picture: Truth Social)

Meloni was once a close ally of Trump and the only European leader to attend his inauguration in 2025.

However, they fell out after she backed the Pope Leo when Trump lashed out at the Pontiff over his condemnation of the Iran war.

Trump was also angered by Meloni’s unwillingness to back the Middle East conflict, accusing her of ‘lacking courage’.

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