MELONI AT MAR-A-LAGO

 

MELONI AT MAR-A-LAGO

https://www.politico.eu/newsletter/brussels-playbook/will-europe-stand-up-to-elon-musk/

 

MELONI MAKES FLORIDA PILGRIMAGE: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, frequently mentioned as one of Europe’s potential “Trump whisperers,” huddled with the incoming U.S. president for 90 minutes at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida this weekend, Hannah Roberts reports.

 

 “Fantastic woman”: Trump reportedly called Meloni a “fantastic woman,” telling a crowd she had “really taken Europe by storm.” His comments will add to perceptions that Meloni will be one of Trump’s main interlocutors in Europe during his second term in the White House, despite some of his hardcore loyalists recently criticizing her MAGA credentials.

 

 Agenda: The unannounced visit to Florida came ahead of Meloni’s planned talks with outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden this week in Rome, the last international trip of his term. Observers expected Meloni and Trump to talk about Ukraine, potential U.S. tariffs on European companies and the Middle East. But above all, Meloni was keen to find a quick solution to the detention of an Italian journalist in Iran.

 

 Free Sala: Cecilia Sala, a journalist for Il Foglio, was arrested in Tehran in December after Italian police detained an Iranian wanted by the Americans, Mohammad Abedini-Najafabad. If the U.S. were to drop the extradition request or make other concessions to Iran it could facilitate Sala’s release, which would be a big win for Meloni at home.

 

https://www.politico.eu/newsletter/brussels-playbook/will-europe-stand-up-to-elon-musk/