Aysu Bicer
14 April 2026•Update: 15 April 2026
US President Donald Trump said he was "shocked" that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni "doesn't want to help us in the war” against Iran.
His remarks to Tuesday’s Corriere della Sera newspaper came after Meloni dismissed the idea of a society where religious leaders follow political leaders' orders, following Trump's pointed criticism of Pope Leo.
Trump said he has not spoken to Meloni – a fellow right-wing conservative – for “a long time.”
“Because she doesn't want to help us with NATO, she doesn't want to help us get rid of nuclear weapons. It's very different from what I thought,” he said, referring to Iran’s alleged program to develop nuclear weapons, which Tehran denies. “It is no longer the same person, and Italy will not be the same country.”
Trump also questioned Italy’s domestic and energy policies, asking: “Do you like the fact that your president is not doing anything to get the (Iranian) oil?” following earlier remarks by Trump that he could “take” Iran’s oil.
“I can't imagine it. I'm shocked by her. I thought she had courage, I was wrong,” said Trump.
“She does not care if Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow up Italy in two minutes if she had the chance,” he claimed.
Later in a post on Truth Social, Trump called on Pope Leo to address Iran’s human rights record and nuclear ambitions, escalating an ongoing public dispute between the White House and the Vatican over the conflict in the Middle East.
"Will someone please tell Pope Leo that Iran has killed at least 42,000 innocent, completely unarmed, protesters in the last two months, and that for Iran to have a Nuclear Bomb is absolutely unacceptable," Trump said.
In Italy, Meloni as well as opposition figures have strongly criticized Trump's remarks on the pope. Elly Schlein, secretary of the Democratic Party, said there was "firm condemnation for the attack by President Donald Trump on Meloni for having dutifully expressed solidarity with Pope Leo."
She added: "We are adversaries in this chamber but all Italian citizens and we will not accept attacks or threats against the government and our country."
Though the current pope is American, the Vatican’s presence as a microstate in the heart of Rome and Catholicism as Italy’s predominant faith make any attack on the pope almost seem like an attack on Italy itself.
Energy and Hungary
On energy security and the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said: "They pay the highest energy costs in the world and are not even ready to fight for the Strait of Hormuz from where they receive it. They depend on Donald Trump to keep it open."
The war involving Iran, the US, and Israel has driven global oil prices sharply higher, as the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil passes, remains under Iran’s control. As negotiations faltered, Trump vowed to blockade the strait to force Iran back to the negotiating table. He has lambasted countries in Europe for declining to take part in efforts to reopen the strait, a blockage that many European leaders blame on Trump for starting a war without consulting them.
On the defeat of longtime favorite Viktor Orban in Sunday’s Hungarian general elections, Trump said: "He was a friend of mine … a good man, he did a good job on immigration. He didn't let people come and ruin his country like Italy did.”
Trump and the US Republican Party have long held up Orban’s government as a model right-wing administration and openly tried to emulate him.
Meanwhile, ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl, citing his conversation with Trump on Tuesday, said the president was not concerned about Orban's loss and he likes incoming Prime Minister Peter Magyar.
"I think the new man’s going to do a good job — he’s a good man," Trump told Karl.
Trump said he did not know if it would have made a difference if he had gone to Hungary instead of Vice President JD Vance to campaign for Orban.
"He was behind substantially," Trump said. "I wasn’t that involved in this one. Viktor’s a good man, though."
*Diyar Guldogan from Washington, DC contributed to this report
