(Adnkronos) – US president Donald Trump’s 2017-2021 administration was not aggressive towards Italy, and despite Trump’s campaign threat to impose tariffs, scope exists for “productive” bilateral dialogue with the US, according to foreign minister Antonio Tajani.
“Even in the past, Donald Trump’s administration had an unaggressive attitude,” Tajani said Monday on the sidelines of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels.
And, if a good beginning bodes well, in the first talks we had held – those between the premier (Giorgia Meloni) with Trump, and mine with with (US secretary of state) Marco Rubio – I believe there is room for productive dialogue with the US,” said Tajani.
Tajani and Rubio “had a long and friendly telephone conversation” on Sunday that “reaffirmed the traditional relationship of trust and closeness” between Italy and the US, said a foreign ministry statement.
Tajani underlined Italy’s commitment to NATO, which “remains the pillar of Euro-Atlantic security”, noting that “relations with the US are fundamental to Italian foreign policy”.
Tajani also underscored the government’s desire to boost trade ties with the US, which is the second largest market for Italian exports, with total trade worth over 92 billion euros in 2023, according to the statement.
“The Minister expressed the desire to relaunch the presence of Italian companies in the USA, also through direct investment,” the statement concluded.
