Giorgia Meloni has confirmed she has been invited to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president and “will happily go” if her agenda permits, ending weeks of speculation over whether the Italian prime minister was on the guest list.
“I would be happy to be there,” Meloni told a press conference in Rome on Thursday when asked about her plans for the 20 January event. “I’m evaluating the compatibility with the agenda. If I can, I will gladly participate.”
If she does attend, Meloni will not be the only figure from Europe’s far right: Éric Zemmour, a one-time French presidential candidate known for his vituperative xenophobia, said on Thursday he would be going, while an invitation has also been extended to Hungary’s nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orbán.
Meloni first met Trump at the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in early December and last weekend made a flying visit to his Mar-a-Lago golf club in Florida.
“The idea [for the trip] came up in Paris and was an opportunity to confirm a very solid relationship,” she said. “I also had an excellent relationship with [Joe] Biden, but having two conservative leaders can further strengthen convergence. It’s added value for Italy and the EU.”
Meloni added that the pair had spoken “about the general picture” without “going into specific issues”. However, it was reported by the New York Times that she had “pressed hard” on the case of Cecilia Sala, the Italian journalist who returned home on Wednesday after being released from prison in Iran. Meloni said Sala’s release was secured by a three-way diplomatic effort between Italy, Iran and the US.
Meloni was speaking at the traditional annual press conference of the Italian prime minister, during which she responded to a broad range of questions, mostly about her relations with Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk.
Musk has launched scathing attacks on several European leaders in recent weeks, in particular the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, and the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, that have provoked fury across Europe.
But Meloni, who has nurtured a good relationship with Musk since coming to power in October 2022, rejected a suggestion that his comments on his X social network constituted “dangerous interference”.
“The problem is when wealthy people use their resources to finance parties, associations and political exponents all over the world to influence the political choices of nation states,” Meloni said. “That’s not what Musk is doing.”
She added: “Elon Musk financed an election campaign in his country, by his candidate, in a system in which, by the way, I would point out that this is quite common. But I am not aware of Elon Musk financing parties, associations or political exponents around the world.”
Asked about reports that Italy is in “advanced talks” with Musk’s company, SpaceX, to use his Starlink satellite system to provide secure communications for the Italian government and military, Meloni said she had never “personally spoken to him” about it.
“I don’t do favours for friends, it is not my thing,” Meloni said.
She said her “only lens was that of the national interest” and that Italy was “simply in the investigation phase” of the discussions, adding that it was normal to have such talks with private companies, especially when there were “no public alternatives”.
Asked about Trump’s remarks this week on Greenland and the Panama canal, Meloni said she believed they were intended as messages to other global powers rather than hostile claims against two countries.
“I rule out that the US in the coming years will try to forcefully annex territories that interest them,” she said. “The Panama canal is fundamental for global trade, Greenland is rich in strategic raw materials, and these are territories that have seen a growing Chinese interest in recent years. It’s an energetic way of saying that the USA will not idly stand by in the face of possible initiatives of other big players.”
