Donald Trump hits Meloni with Iran nuclear warning – ‘Blow Italy up in minutes’
Donald Trump has issued a stark reply to Italian PM Giorgia Meloni over Iran’s nuclear capabilities after she criticised his comments about Pope Leo
Trump has hit back at Meloni
Donald Trump has hit back after he was criticised for attacking Pope Leo.
Giorgia Meloni, Prime Minister of Italy, described Trump’s tirade against the Pope as “unacceptable”. Now the US president has said it is “she who is unacceptable”.
In an interview with Corriere della Sera, Trump also said he was “shocked” by the Italian PM’s comments. He went on to issue a stark warning over Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
“It is she 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 said.
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“She is no longer the same person, and Italy will not be the same country.” Trump added that he had not had contact with Meloni “for a long time”. Trump and Meloni have previously been close political allies.
“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” the president wrote in his Truth Social post about the Pope, adding: “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon.”
Trump refused to apologise to Pope Leo on Monday – and sought to explain away a now-deleted social media post depicting himself as Jesus by saying he had thought the image was of him as a doctor.
Trump was asked about his comments toward the US-born head of the Catholic Church, as well as the post depicting himself as a saint-like healer, in a hastily called question-and-answer session with reporters at the White House.
“He was very much against what I’m doing with regard to Iran, and you cannot have a nuclear Iran. Pope Leo would not be happy with the end result,” Trump said, adding: “I think he’s very weak on crime and other things, so I’m not going to apologise.”
That response followed the Pope pushing back on Trump’s broadside against him the previous evening, telling reporters that the Vatican’s appeals for peace and reconciliation are rooted in the Gospel and that he doesn’t fear the Trump administration.
“To put my message on the same plane as what the president has attempted to do here, I think is not understanding what the message of the Gospel is,” the Pope said aboard the papal plane en route to Algeria. “And I’m sorry to hear that, but I will continue on what I believe is the mission of the church in the world today.”
