In stark contrast to many leaders who feel that the Trump administration’s hostility towards Europe signals the beginning of the end for friendly EU-U.S. relations, the Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, reaffirmed her support for Trump.
Meloni spoke about her belief that the U.S. will continue to support the Ukrainian cause and the EU project.
Meloni spoke virtually this week at the Conservative Political Action Conference, an annual event in Washington DC that brings together conservative politicians, public intellectuals, pundits, and issue activists.
CPAC tends to consolidate policy positions and political strategies across the political right.
A Outlier in Europe: Meloni’s Stance on Trump
Meloni was one of several foreign leaders who spoke at the multi-day right-wing convention.
In her CPAC speech, Meloni, who is a staunch supporter of Ukraine, reaffirmed her beliefs that
the U.S. will continue to support the country in the war against the Russian invasion of its
borders.
In her speech, Meloni declared, "Our adversaries hope that President Trump will move away from us, but knowing him as a strong and effective leader I bet that those who hope for divisions will be proven wrong.”
Meloni claimed, “With Donald Trump leading the United States, we will never again see the disaster we saw in Afghanistan 4 years ago”, referring to the chaos that ensued following the withdrawal of US and NATO troops from Afghanistan in September 2021.
Meloni Admits Europe’s Problems
Meloni also continued to defend U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who faced criticism for recent
remarks in which he claimed Europe’s biggest threats come “from within”.
This month the U.S. Vice President spoke at the Munich Security Conference.
Europeans Taken Off Guard
Many expected him to speak about possible negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. The conference aimed to discussed this instead of ‘European culture wars’.
However, Vance dismissed Russia as a threat to European democracy and instead launched a verbal attack on all European governments.
Instead, Vance accused European governments of moving away from their values.
Biggest Threat to Europe: Cultural Values
Instead of speaking about Ukraine or defence-related issues, JD Vance’s tirade touched
on key “culture war” topics, accusing European governments of suppressing free speech,
fomenting mass migration and infringing upon religious freedom.
Many European leaders have since denounced JD Vance’s statements. Meloni was one of a
few EU leaders who supported Vance, along with Alice Weidel of Germany’s AfD party.
Meloni criticised “elites” who were upset with Vance’s speech, claiming that “American liberal leftism was being replicated in Europe.
Meloni said: “Vice President Vance was discussing something deeper: identity, democracy, freedom of speech.”
Has Meloni Overplayed Her Hand?
In the face of the administration’s wavering support for Ukraine, and the wake of President
Trump’s claims of Ukrainian corruption and aggression, one may view Meloni’s continued trust
in Trump as misplaced.
However, it can also be construed as an attempt to bridge the widening rift between Europe and the U.S., and arguably Italy has much to gain from this partnership, although the stakes are incredibly high.
As stated by Arturo Varvelli, Director of the European Council on Foreign Relations in Rome, “for better or worse, Meloni will have to represent Europe's interests to Trump.”
A senior EU official in Brussels, who chose to remain anonymous, told sources: it was unclear that Trump wanted to build any bridges to Europe, with or without Meloni.
Another EU official claimed that Meloni’s friendship with Trump would be valuable if she can persuade him to stick by Ukraine in its war with Russia.
Meloni’s capacity to navigate a relationship with Trump and his administration could prove pivotal not just for Italian interests but also for the broader stability of EU-U.S. relations in the face of ongoing challenges.
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