Trump has his reasons
Meloni, who is gaining a reputation as Europe’s future bridge to Donald Trump, came to the president-elect’s defense after he floated his designs on Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal. Meloni brushed off the threat of a U.S. invasion, claiming that when Trump does something, it’s “for a reason.”
Instead, Meloni said she sees Trump’s comments as a “forceful message to other big global players rather than a hostile action.” As president from 2017 to 2021, Trump was capable of deterrence diplomacy, Meloni added.
Meloni visited Trump at his Mar-a-Lago retreat in Florida last weekend and said the welcome she received had been “beyond expectations.” She said she made the trip “to confirm a relationship that promises to be very solid, I don’t know if I can say privileged.” While Meloni built a strong relationship with outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden since 2021, she foresaw that having two conservative leaders in power at home and in the U.S. would create “an added value, for Italy and for Europe.”
Meloni also confirmed she had been invited to Trump’s inauguration, and said she would go “gladly” if her diary permits.
Triangular talks facilitated Sala’s release
Meloni reveled in the Wednesday liberation of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala. Telling Sala’s mother that her daughter was free “was the most emotional moment of the past two years,” Meloni said.
Sala was arrested in Iran in December, after Italy detained a suspected supplier of drone parts, Mohammed Abedini, wanted by the U.S. Pressed for details as to whether Trump had given Meloni permission to free Abedini, facilitating Sala’s release, Meloni said the negotiations had been triangular between Italy, Iran and the U.S., and added that talks on Abedini’s arrest must continue with the U.S.
