Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has cancelled a planned trip to the United States after U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that Premier Giorgia Meloni had “begged” for a photo with him during the recent G7 summit.

Response to Trump’s Claims

Meloni posted a video calling Trump’s claims “completely fabricated” and stated that “Italy and I do not beg.” The Italian government has slammed Trump’s claim, with Tajani calling it “serious and offensive” toward Meloni and all of Italy.

The controversy began when Trump made the comments in an interview broadcast on the La7 network. Trump said Meloni had “begged” him for a photo-op, but Meloni denied this, saying Trump’s statements are “completely fabricated.”

Italy’s Defense Minister Guido Crosetto also rebuked Trump’s claims, saying he didn’t believe Meloni would ever beg someone for a photo. The situation has highlighted the frayed relations between the U.S. and Italy, particularly over the U.S. war in Iran and Trump’s position on Ukraine.

Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.