Italy will not respond further to President Donald Trump's attacks on Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, ministers said, pledging to protect bilateral ties that have come under strain in recent weeks after the two leaders traded accusations.
Meloni was once seen as a close ally of Trump, but the relationship faltered last month when he told Italian TV channel La7 that she had "begged" him to take a photo with him at a G7 summit in France. She denied the claim and accused him of fabricating the story.
With the two leaders due to attend the NATO summit in Ankara on Tuesday and Wednesday, Trump posted on Truth Social a picture of Meloni looking up at him with the caption, "RESTRAINING ORDER NEEDED."
The post prompted questions about how Meloni would respond, with some observers watching for any impact on relations among allies at the closely watched NATO gathering. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Rome had no plans to respond publicly and wanted to maintain good relations with the U.S. regardless of who was president.
"Trump speaks for himself. We have a U.S. president who loves to provoke, especially on social media. We have decided to stop responding to these remarks," Tajani told La Stampa newspaper.
Other senior government figures, including Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, struck a similar tone when asked about a possible response, while Meloni's office declined to comment on how she would behave when meeting Trump in Ankara.
However, a source close to her, who declined to be named, ruled out the possibility that the Italian leader would snub Trump, saying she knew how to handle such situations and would instead greet him "with a smile."
Meloni was once a vocal supporter of Trump and was the only European leader to attend his inauguration in 2025, hoping to forge close ties with him on the back of their shared right-wing political outlook.
However, she criticized him this year over his comments about Pope Leo following the pontiff's condemnation of the Iran conflict. Trump later responded by accusing her of lacking courage.
Following the public dispute, Italian media speculated that the government could boycott a traditional U.S. Independence Day celebration. But in a sign of continued engagement, several senior government figures attended the event at the ambassador's residence in Rome last week.
Trump's remarks drew condemnation in Italy, with some opposition parties also expressing solidarity with Meloni. Italy's Il Foglio newspaper responded on its front page on Tuesday by publishing a picture of the U.S. president with Russia's Vladimir Putin under the same caption: "RESTRAINING ORDER NEEDED."