'I'm shocked': Trump hits back at Italy's Meloni, says she lacks courage

President Donald Trump sharply criticized Giorgia Meloni on Tuesday, marking a shift in his rhetoric towards the Italian Prime Minister, whom he had once described as "a great leader." "I'm shocked at her," Trump said in an interview with Italian daily Corriere della Sera, as reported by Politico. "I thought she was brave, but I was wrong." Relations between Rome and Washington reached a tipping point after Italy decided to suspend a defence cooperation agreement with Israel "in light of the current situation", aided by the country's unwillingness to help the U.S. "in the war." Trump also appeared surprised by the Italian PM's reaction to his statements attacking Pope Leo XIV.

"I find President Trump's words towards the Holy Father unacceptable," Meloni said in a statement on Monday. "The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and ​it is right and normal for him to call for peace and to condemn every form of war." The Italian PM, who has been facing increasing criticism domestically for her alignment with Trump, later told reporters that she "would not feel very comfortable in a ​society where ​religious leaders do what political ‌leaders ⁠say." Trump responded to Meloni on Tuesday, insisting it is she who's unacceptable, "because she doesn't care if Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow up Italy in two minutes if it had the chance."

The split, a wider and growing divide between the United States and its NATO allies since the launch of Operation Epic Fury on February 28, is reportedly driven by Italy's domestic sentiment. As per reports, a large part of the Italian population, including members of her own electorate, does not favour the Italian PM's alignment with President Trump.  A YouGov poll, in January, a month before the Middle East conflict, showed 77% Italians had an unfavourable opinion about Trump.

Among other allies, Spain has emerged as one of the most vocal opponents of the conflict, with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez saying last week that the country "will not applaud those who set the world on fire just because they show up with a bucket." Sánchez's statements, after his recent meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, also indicated Spain's displeasure with U.S. and Israeli actions in the Middle East. "I find it very difficult to find other interlocutors, beyond China, who can resolve this situation in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz," Sánchez said, as reported by The Associated Press.

Both the U.K. and France have also denied the U.S.'s request to aid in the Strait of Hormuz blockade, despite the President writing on Truth Social that "Other Countries will be involved with this Blockade." British PM Keir Starmer told the BBC that the U.K. is not supporting the blockade. "We're not supporting the blockade and all of the marshalling diplomatically, politically and capability... that's all focused, from our point of view, on getting the Strait fully open," he said. Starmer also asserted that "we're not getting dragged into the war" despite "some considerable pressure."

French President Emmanuel Macron, meanwhile, said that France and the U.K. will "organize a conference with those countries prepared to contribute alongside us to a peaceful multinational mission aimed at restoring freedom of navigation in the strait." He, however, clarified that it is a strictly defensive mission, "separate from the warring parties to the conflict." Macron has urged for the ceasefire to be strictly respected by all parties, "and that it include Lebanon," and sought the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz "unconditionally, without restrictions or tolls, as soon as possible."