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Meloni & Trump: Forging a New Right-Wing Alliance to Redefine Global Politics

  • Writer: Armin Sijamić
    Armin Sijamić
  • May 13
  • 5 min read

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has met with U.S. President Donald Trump multiple times this year. What is the secret link between Meloni and Trump, and what connects them?

Two people stand next to a door, one gesturing with an open hand. A US flag is visible. Both wear formal attire. Mood is professional.
Photo: Trump and Meloni

Donald Trump’s intent to govern the United States and the world in his own unique way is no secret. He recently stated this himself, adding that he “has a lot of fun” while doing it—a remark that sounded like it came from someone enjoying an easy job.


In an earlier statement, Trump claimed his job is not easy and requires significant effort. This stance is unsurprising and would likely be echoed by any shrewd politician, even those leading the smallest administrative units. Thus, Trump’s remarks of this sort should be taken with a grain of irony or as part of his performance, which alternates between compliments and insults depending on his audience.


But when a foreign official meets with a U.S. president multiple times in a few months, the matter becomes serious. This holds true even for Trump, who praises Meloni with terms like “a fantastic woman” “ who “has conquered Europe,” an “excellent prime minister and true world leader,” and a “brilliant person with immense talent.”


What Trump says about Meloni need not be true or false—it is part of a public performance, giving her political backing in Italy and the EU. Trump leverages his popularity and power as U.S. president to assist a politician who is a key cog in his plans for Europe and the world.


Meloni: From Fascism to the Acceptable Right


The rise of Giorgia Meloni to power was met with the same hysteria in Western media as that of any politician who slightly deviates from mainstream politics. Her electoral victory in September 2022 was portrayed in parts of the West as an apocalypse—a return of fascists to lead European nations and the end of the EU and NATO.


At the time, it was accurately reported that Meloni was a member of the neofascist National Alliance party, that in 1996 she called Benito Mussolini “the best politician of the last fifty years,” blamed Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito for crimes during and after WWII, claimed parts of modern Croatia, and more.


But back then, Meloni was a political marginal. Her party, Brothers of Italy, received 2.2% support in elections eleven years ago, 4.4% seven years ago, and 26% in 2022.


This rare phenomenon globally—though common in Italian politics, where rapid party ascents are frequent—was driven by two factors. First, Brothers of Italy absorbed the right wing of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s party, with whom Meloni was close. Second, Meloni shifted away from radical, Europe-unacceptable far-right positions toward the center-right, at least on economic policy and most of her party’s value judgments. Her 2019 statement, “I am Giorgia. I am a woman. I am a mother. I am a Christian,” later became the foundation of her political brand.


Trump’s Perspective


What Meloni achieved in Italy, Trump has done differently in the U.S. during recent elections. Unlike his first two campaigns, Trump now heavily involves businessmen, Republican structures, lobbies, media, fringe groups, and minorities.


He has moved away from his initial rhetoric of “draining the swamp” in Washington and persecuting U.S. politicians and officials over (un)founded accusations. In his second term, he is copying Meloni’s approach by attracting anyone who can help him maintain popularity and marginalize ideological rivals.


Meloni also moderated her foreign policy stances. As her rise to power became certain, she reassured the West by stating she is not against NATO or the EU but believes reforms are needed.


Italy’s approach to NATO remains unchanged, and Meloni supports Ukraine against Russian aggression. However, her stance toward the EU has shifted. Official Rome now fights illegal migration and clashes with “woke ideology.” This approach, particularly on migration, is gaining traction even among non-right-wing factions in the EU.


Meloni has mirrored Poland’s opposition, which until recently governed Warsaw, by blending Atlanticism, ultraconservatism, sovereignism, economic liberalism, European unity, and ties to Israel and Arab monarchies. She has given new momentum to the right-wing transformation started by Marine Le Pen, who distanced herself from her father Jean-Marie Le Pen’s legacy.


Trump’s second-term strategy strikingly resembles this model. His team undoubtedly draws on these experiences to craft policies. The new right, led by Trump, has merged ideologies once deemed incompatible decades ago.


Realpolitik and Economics


Beyond ideology, Meloni is crucial to Trump’s administration. Vice President JD Vance, Elon Musk, and others in Trump’s circle have harshly criticized the current governments of the UK, Germany, France, and Spain—major European powers except Poland (pro-Brussels and pro-American) and Italy.


Meloni has become Trump’s bridge to the EU. Weeks ago, she promised Trump to organize a meeting with EU leaders, advocating for continued free trade without tariffs. Trump had earlier imposed 20% tariffs on all EU goods.


European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen acknowledges Meloni’s influence, admitting she discussed this with the Italian premier before Meloni’s U.S. trip.


Meloni’s clout extends further. Media report her friendship with Musk, who supports Brothers of Italy and participates in their events. Talks of Tesla’s major investment in Italian electric vehicle production coincide with Chinese competitors dominating U.S. and EU markets.


Data on Tesla’s European sales validate this narrative: record declines in Spain (75%), France (63%), Germany (62%), and Scandinavia contrast with modest growth in Meloni-led Italy.


Trump and Musk value Italy’s friendship, given its status as Europe’s fourth-largest economy and the world’s eighth-largest. Meloni signaled alignment with Washington by withdrawing Italy from China’s Belt and Road Initiative in December 2023—a blow to Beijing and a win for the U.S.


However, Italy’s economy is fragile. When Meloni took office, Italy’s debt was 152% of GDP. The COVID crisis triggered inflation and recession, while sanctions on Russia (a key partner) exacerbated energy concerns. Trump’s tariffs hurt Italian exports, which totaled $70 billion to the U.S. in 2024. As an EU member, Italy has limited economic flexibility, relying on loans to service existing debts.


An Alliance on the New Right


Addressing these economic and social challenges requires more than technocratic solutions. As the West faces upheaval and Washington prepares for a showdown with China, there is a need for an ideological framework resilient to electoral backlash over poor economic results and public discontent.


Who can formulate such a policy? What would it look like?


In the absence of new grand political and philosophical ideas in the West, the right has resorted to recycling existing ones. Trump is the standard-bearer of this new right-wing politics, distinct from the classical Western right of recent decades. Argentine President Javier Milei, who tested Trump’s ideas domestically by slashing ministries and cutting free cancer drugs, acknowledges this.


Earlier this year, Milei declared a global front led by Trump to defeat the left, including Meloni, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele, and others.


This emerging alliance was evident during the U.S. elections, with support from Poland’s Andrzej Duda, Austria’s Freedom Party, France’s National Rally, Spain’s Vox, and others at odds with the supposed “left” governing the West.


For this group, the “left” is no longer the worker-focused movement of decades past but a “cultural model” and “woke ideology.” Workers’ rights and poverty, once the left’s raison d'être, are rarely mentioned today.


Trump, who returned to the White House due to Biden’s missteps, needs fresh momentum for his evolving policies. Meloni is invaluable here: she capitalized on public discontent and rebranded far-right politics into something palatable even to Europeans wary of Trump. This experience could benefit Trump, who boasts, “No one knows the system better than me,” and “No one understands politicians better than me.




The article was published previously on PISjournal.net


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