Trump floats US-Europe meet as Vance in Italy

Rome: A back-to-back round of US-Italy talks on tariffs shifted to Rome on Friday as US Vice President JD Vance met with Premier Giorgia Meloni and the White House suggested a broader US-Europe summit was under consideration.

“I’ve been missing you,” Meloni jokingly told Vance as he entered the courtyard of Chigi Palace, the premier’s office.

They had seen each other just the previous day in the Oval Office, where US President Donald Trump lavished praise on the Italian leader for her crackdown on migration but didn’t yield on tariff plans that have increased tension with the European Union and stoked fears of recession.

The White House and Meloni’s office on Friday issued a joint statement that said Trump would visit Italy “in the very near future.”

“There is also consideration to hold, on such occasion, a meeting between US and Europe,” the statement said.

Meloni, a far-right leader who has positioned herself as a bridge between the Trump administration and Europe, said she hoped the second day of talks with Vance would serve to strengthen a longstanding friendship. “We believe that Italy can be an extremely important partner in Europe and the Mediterranean for

the US,” she said.