Meloni's explosive meeting with Trump: Focus on foreign policy crises!

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni plans a visit to the future US President Donald Trump. The visit is scheduled for Saturday evening (7.30 p.m. local time, 1.30 a.m. CET Sunday) in the US state of Florida. Trump has mainly stayed in his estate Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach since his election victory in November. An official confirmation for the meeting is still pending.

Meloni, the chair of the Fratelli d’Italia right-wing party, has close relationships with the Trump camp and also maintains a friendly relationship with Elon Musk, who advises Trump. Trump will swear again in the White House on January 20. The outgoing President Joe Biden is expected in Rome next week and is planning to meet Pope Francis and Meloni. Meloni has been running a coalition of three right -wing parties in Rome for two years and had held the G7 until the turn of the year.

political challenges and international relationships

Meloni's visit comes at a time when she is faced with a foreign policy challenge. This challenge concerns the arrest of the Italian reporter Cecilia Sala in Iran on December 19, while working with a regular journalist visa. Sala was arrested three days after the Iranian businessman Mohammad Abedini was arrested at Malpensa Airport in Milan. Abedini was arrested on the basis of a US arrest warrant, since he allegedly delivered drone parts that were used in an attack in 2023, in which three US soldiers were killed in Jordan. Iran fought a participation in the attack.

Trump's spokesman Steven Cheung said that it was no surprise that world leaders have contacted Trump's historical victory to develop better relationships with the United States. Meloni's office did not immediately comment on the media reports about the planned meeting. On Friday, the Iranian Foreign Ministry appointed the Italian ambassador to talk about Abedini's arrest. An Iranian Foreign Minister of Foreign Affairs asked Italy to reject the "hostage policy" of the United States and enable Abedini's release to avoid damage to bilateral relationships. Abedini is in prison, and a court will decide later this month whether house arrest will be granted while the judges examine the US delivery application.

According to Italian media reports, Sala is in solitary confinement in a cold cell with constantly switched on neon light, her glasses have been confiscated and it has hardly any contact with the outside world.