Italian PM Giorgia Meloni Holds Surprise Meeting with President-elect Trump at Mar-a-Lago

Jan 5, 2025, 01:23 AM

On January 4th, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni flew to Palm Beach, Florida, for a surprise meeting with President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club. Meloni's visit comes ahead of her scheduled meeting with President Joe Biden in Rome on January 9th, which will be Biden's final overseas trip as president. During the evening, Trump hosted Meloni for dinner at Mar-a-Lago, with his reported pick for Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, also in attendance. Trump reportedly praised Meloni, calling her a 'fantastic woman' who has 'taken Europe by storm.' The agenda for the meeting was not publicly disclosed, but discussions may have included trade, NATO, the conflict in Ukraine, and the case of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who is detained in Iran. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani was reportedly kept uninformed about Meloni's trip. Meloni's visit aims to strengthen ties with the incoming U.S. administration before Trump's inauguration on January 20th.