Over the past few years, many Italians have asked their government to do the same, with hundreds of thousands have taking to the streets or going on strike in protest.
Yet Meloni’s right-wing coalition government has remained one of Israel’s closest allies in Europe, refusing to join the growing number of countries recognising Palestinian statehood.
But in late March, her camp lost a referendum on a judicial constitutional reform, which many interpreted as a vote on her government’s popularity – not least in terms of its relations with Israel and the US.
With only 18 months to go before the next general election, Meloni has been tweaking her rhetoric in order to distance herself from these associations, which are becoming increasingly unpopular among the Italian electorate.
Since the referendum result, she has described the US-Israeli war with Iran as part of a growing and dangerous trend of interventions “outside the scope of international law”.
On Monday, she issued a rare criticism of Donald Trump, describing the US president’s disparaging comments about Pope Leo XIV as “unacceptable”. She later added that the pontiff had her “solidarity”.
That led to a swift rebuke from Trump, who told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that he was “shocked at her”.
“I thought she had courage, but I was wrong,” he said, adding Meloni “does not care whether Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow Italy up in two minutes if it had the chance”.
Meloni may be hoping the first cracks in the Italy-US relationship will help her claw back votes as next year’s general election approaches.
At one point, Trump’s evident sympathy for Meloni appeared to have earned her special recognition as a potential privileged interlocutor among EU countries, and was touted by her supporters as an asset.
But now, with Trump becoming an increasingly unpopular figure, that association risks being damaging. In January, a survey showed 63% of the Italian electorate holds a negative opinion of the US.
Following Trump’s comments, Meloni’s allies rushed to her defence. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on X said Italy’s alliance with the US was “built on mutual loyalty, respect, and honesty.”
“And on Pope Leo XIV she said exactly what all of us Italians think. The prime minister and the government defend and will always defend only and solely the interests of Italy,” Tajani said.
“Being allies does not mean accepting everything in silence, but having the courage to clearly state what one believes to be right,” defence minister Guido Crosetto said.
