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President Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are openly clashing after he claimed she begged him for a photo at the G7 summit.

Getting into it: In a phone interview with Italy’s La7 network, Trump said Meloni had pleaded for a picture together at the summit in France and that he only went along with it because he felt bad for her. La7 only ran an Italian dub and never released the original English, so there’s no way to independently confirm his exact words. Meloni hit back Friday, calling the statements “completely fabricated,” saying she was stunned by how he treats allies, and declaring that Italy does not beg.

Trump dug in Saturday on Truth Social, insisting she “asked, over and over,” tying it to her sagging poll numbers and accusing her of refusing to back the US against Iran, including by denying American aircraft the use of Italian bases. He wrote that she now wanted to be friends again to get her “numbers up,” adding, “No thanks!!!” Meloni fired back within minutes that being his friend “certainly has not helped” her popularity and told him to “focus on yours.”

The spat prompted Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani to cancel a US trip, branding the remarks “serious and offensive,” while politicians from every corner of Italy lined up behind Meloni. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said an attack on her was an attack on all of Italy, the justice minister invoked the graves of US soldiers who died liberating Italy in World War II, and even opposition figures and the Italian press took her side.

Meloni, a right anti-immigrant figure and Italy’s first female prime minister, was the only EU leader to attend Trump’s 2025 inauguration, but the two have since split over Ukraine, Greenland and especially the Iran war, as well as Trump’s earlier attacks on Pope Leo XIV.

This all comes as Italian analysts suggested the feud may actually serve Meloni, giving her a chance to confront a deeply unpopular Trump in Europe as she faces declining approval ahead of Italy’s 2027 election.