Giorgia Meloni’s protest will backfire
Italy’s prime minister is being hailed as Joan of Arc, but how smart was it really to enter into conflict with Donald Trump just before his Executive Proclamation 11001 from January is set to take effect?
June 22, 2026
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, photo: Governo italiano, Wikipedia Commons
Geopolitical tension
The geopolitical situation is complicated; at times, it becomes more complicated than it needs to be. European heads of government who end up in disputes with the American president bring success neither to the country they represent nor to the EU as a union.
Several have irritated the US administration through their speeches, and some have ended up in direct disputes. Giorgia Meloni now joins the ranks after Pedro Sánchez and Friedrich Merz this spring.
Meloni’s beef with Trump escalated
Meloni was responding to a remark in which Donald Trump claimed she had begged for a photo with him during the G7 in Evian last week. Meloni in turn claims that she did not beg, and that Italy does not beg for anything. Trump then replies that Meloni needs him for popularity, and Meloni fires back at Trump’s own declining popularity.
Trump points out that Italy has not allowed the US to use its airports during the war against Iran, despite the fact that Italy itself could become a target for Iran. In the days that followed, Meloni delivered speeches in which she linked the conflict to Italy’s sovereignty.
The dispute developed into a diplomatic conflict when Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani cancelled a planned visit to Washington.
Compared to Joan of Arch
Giorgia Meloni is being praised in the media and by large parts of the public; “brave” is a recurring word. Some compare her to the Catholic freedom fighter Joan of Arc. The latter met a grim fate: she was burned at the stake in 1431.
Tensions between Trump and European leaders
Diplomatic relations with the United States are at a low point for both Spain and Germany following remarks by Sánchez and Merz in April. Meloni, who was originally one of the few European supporters of Trump, has now brought Italy into a strained diplomatic relationship with the United States.
Other European leaders have also irritated Trump, among them France’s Macron, Britain’s Starmer, Denmark’s Mette Frederiksen and Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre.
The Trump administration has made no secret of the fact that it wants bilateral agreements with European countries; the US does not want to deal multilaterally with the European Union. European solo moves serve the American strategy to a greater extent than they strengthen the union.
The consequences
Italy and other countries that end up in conflict with the United States risk trading a fleeting moral victory for lasting costs: tariffs and retaliation against exports during a vulnerable trade window, tougher American demands for burden-sharing on defense, and the loss of diplomatic channels precisely when good relations are most needed. When diplomatic ties with individual EU countries weaken, the entire union is weakened as a result.
The United States has withdrawn 5,000 military personnel from Germany, and the same could become relevant for Spain, Italy and others. The Trump administration has announced further withdrawals, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio leading the effort. Such withdrawals are a very serious matter, as the EU will not be capable of defending itself for many years.
There is a wide gap between political ambitions for an autonomous defense and the actual defense capabilities available in the coming years.
US is strategically and legally ready
The United States has positioned itself strategically and legally for a confrontation with the EU this summer; the underlying cause is a conflict over the management of critical minerals. The strategy the US is pursuing is well documented through public sources. EU leaders should focus on it and on the deadlines it sets in order to find solutions that serve the union. Read more about Proclamation 11001 and what lies ahead here.
This was an exceptionally bad time to enter into conflict with the United States. Sun Tzu wrote that the skilful choose their battles — and win without fighting. Meloni chose the opposite: a fight she cannot win, at a moment when she has the most to lose.
SOURCES
CNN
Trump doubles down on feud with Italian Prime Minister Meloni, insisting she asked for G7 photoNBC News
Trump and Italy's Giorgia Meloni escalate war of words over G7 photo claimsABC News
Trump, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni feud online over G7 photoFrance 24
Trump says Italy's Meloni asked 'over and over' for a photo with him as diplomatic spat escalatesBreaking Defense
Hegseth orders 5,000 US troops to withdraw from GermanyTIME
The U.S. Military Drawdown in Europe Has Only Just BegunThe White House
Adjusting Imports of Processed Critical Minerals and Their Derivative Products into the United StatesProject Gutenberg
The Art of War by Sun Tzu, translated by Lionel Giles
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