Trump's latest tussle is with Meloni, says 'she is the one who is unacceptable'
Iran-US war: Donald Trump is now at loggerheads with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. He said that she lacked courage and wanted America to do the job for her. Meloni has slammed Trump for criticising the Pope and his decisions on the Iran war.
Trump lashes out against Meloni
Donald Trump has hit out against Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for slamming the United States President for attacking Pope Leo and saying that Italy does not want to be involved in the Iran War. Meloni said that Trump's criticism of the pontiff was unacceptable, to which Trump responded, "She is the one who is unacceptable." In an interview, the 79-year-old said, "She does not care if Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow Italy into the air in two minutes if it had the chance."
Trump said he is "shocked by her"
He continued to rage against Meloni, saying that he was shocked to hear her talk like that despite knowing that America is important for Italy. "I cannot imagine that. I am shocked by her. I thought she had courage, I was wrong," Trump told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.
Trump said the Pope should not talk about the war
Trump used the opportunity to once again criticise the Pope for his stance on the Iran War. "He does not understand, and he should not talk about war, because he has no idea what is happening." Trump added that the Pope "does not understand that in Iran they killed 42,000 protesters last month."
Trump says Italy gets its oil from the Strait of Hormuz, but does not want to help
The American president continued to slam Meloni and went on to point out that Italy does not want to help with the war and wants to stay out of it. "She simply says that Italy does not want to be involved, even though Italy gets its oil from there, even though America is very important for Italy. She does not think Italy should be involved. She thinks America should do the work for her."
Trump said Meloni does not want to help get rid of nuclear weapons
He claimed that Meloni was very different from what he had imagined, saying, "She does not want to help us with NATO, she does not want to help us get rid of the nuclear weapon, she is very different from what I thought." Meloni has distanced Italy from the ongoing military campaign involving the US, Israel, and Iran.
Meloni has distanced Italy from the Iran war, calling it a "serious international crises"
On April 14, 2026, Meloni announced the suspension of Italy’s long-standing defence cooperation agreement with Israel. She explicitly stated that Italy "does not take part" and "does not intend to enter" the military strikes led by the US and Israel against Iran. The 49-year-old said that the conflict was one of the most serious international crises in decades and warned that it reflects a broader breakdown in the international legal order.
Trump says Iran war could end in 2-3 weeks
Trump has repeatedly told European nations (including France and Italy) that they should "go get their own oil" if they aren't willing to fight for the Strait of Hormuz. He insisted that it is not the US military's job to secure the waterway for other countries. The American president once again said that the operations in Iran could end "very soon", suggesting a timeline of two to three weeks.
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