A few years ago, it would have been unimaginable that Italy would be home to one of the most stable governments in Europe. Italian coalition administrations tended to last just over a year before collapsing, making Italy predictably unpredictable. <\/p>\n
But a series of factors, including government crises in relatively stable countries like France and Germany, and the roaring popularity of Italy\u2019s current coalition led by far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in power since 2022, have made Rome the key player in Europe\u2019s relationship with the US under Donald Trump\u2019s second presidency. <\/p>\n
During his last term Trump called Europe a \u201cfoe\u201d of the US. This time, Meloni has the potential to turn that around thanks in part to their mutual friend Elon Musk. <\/p>\n
Musk, Trump and Meloni dined together at French President Emmanuel Macron\u2019s 60-person dinner after the official reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris last weekend, an experience Trump later told The New York Post was positive. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe got along great,\u201d he said, adding that he and Meloni had spent \u201ca lot of time together.\u201d <\/p>\n
Describing the diminutive figure (Meloni herself has often joked about her 5\u2019 2\u201d height) as a \u201clive wire,\u201d he predicted that they could \u201cstraighten out the world a little bit.\u201d <\/p>\n
The two leaders, while politically similar, don\u2019t necessarily align on all the world\u2019s most pressing conflicts. Meloni has been one of Ukraine\u2019s strongest backers, having met with President Volodymyr Zelensky a dozen times since Russia\u2019s invasion. <\/p>\n
Whether she can in any way affect what Trump might do, however, is hard to know, but she will have first dibs to try in Europe. <\/p>\n
\u201cMeloni and Musk have a very good ongoing relationship, and Musk can be a kind of best friend to both, as long as the Trump-Musk honeymoon lasts at least.\u201d <\/p>\n
Musk and Meloni forged their very strong friendship in the summer of 2023, and the Tesla founder headlined Meloni\u2019s Brothers of Italy political convention, Atreju, in December last year. <\/p>\n
He is rumored to be making a surprise appearance at the same convention this weekend in Rome, which is being headlined by Argentinian President Javier Milei, another of Trump\u2019s populist bedfellows. <\/p>\n
So close is their relationship that Meloni and Musk had to take to social media earlier this year to dispel rumors of a romance, after he gushed about her beauty when he presented her with a Global Citizens Award on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. <\/p>\n
A photo of them locked in a gaze went viral, to which Musk tweeted that he was there with his mother and that there is \u201cno romantic relationship whatsoever with PM Meloni.\u201d <\/p>\n
Orsina believes that Musk can make it easier for the Italian prime minister to \u201cget in touch\u201d with Trump whenever she feels the need. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere is an opportunity for Meloni to take the initiative and be a bridge between the Trump administration and Europe,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
Meloni claims to have already started that bridging process in Paris, posting a thumbs-up shot of herself with Trump on X with the headline, \u201cThere is already an alliance. The USA-EU axis passes through Italy.\u201d <\/p>\n
Once she was elected in 2022 and became more moderate, Bannon, no longer wielding the power he once did as Trump\u2019s chief strategist, grew cold, telling Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera last week that she has been a disappointment. <\/p>\n
\u201cMeloni has almost turned into a Nikki Haley,\u201d he told the Italian daily, referring to Trump\u2019s opponent in the Republican primaries. Citing her support for Ukraine, and what he describes as Italy\u2019s lack of work on trade, he predicts that it won\u2019t be Meloni who influences Trump, but the other way around. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think her attitude will change with the arrival of President Trump, who will convince her,\u201d Bannon said. \u201cAnd that NATO countries will get on board quite quickly. Otherwise, if she really believes what she has said in recent years, she should be ready with others in Europe to put money into it, to write checks as big as the speeches. We in the MAGA movement are adamant, we want to cut funding for Ukraine in the Chamber by 100%.\u201d <\/p>\n
For the moment, Meloni appears to be on Musk\u2019s, and as a result, Trump\u2019s right sides. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe is a \u2018day after\u2019 politician, much more than a \u2018day before\u2019 politician,\u201d Orsina says, referring to the likelihood she will be reactive rather than proactive when it comes to Trump\u2019s approach to Europe. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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