Donald Trump’s ire and Russian criticism are helping Giorgia Meloni at home | CNN

Dual insults — one from the US president and another from a Russian commentator — flung at Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni appear to be uniting at least some of her critics behind her. Last week, US President Donald Trump – who has historically had a close relationship with Italy’s conservative leader – decried Meloni as “unacceptable” after she stood up to him over his criticism of Pope Leo XIV. “She is the one who is 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,” he told Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera. “I’m shocked by her. I ⁠thought she had courage. I was wrong.” The dispute spilled over beyond the US-Italy relationship this week, when Russian television personality Vladimir Solovyov called her a “certifiable idiot” and “disgrace to the human race” over her “betrayal” of Trump and support of Ukraine. Italy summoned the Russian ambassador to formally complain and Meloni posted a cryptic response on X. “By nature, a diligent regime propagandist cannot impart lessons in either coherence or freedom. But these caricatures certainly won’t change