President Donald Trump veered off-script at a peace summit in Egypt to call Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni beautiful mid-speech.
The moment unfolded as Trump, 79, stood flanked by several world leaders, including Britain’s Keir Starmer and Canada’s Mark Carney, during the signing of a deal to end the Gaza war. As cameras rolled, Trump began acknowledging figures behind him—then paused at Meloni, 48, and began musing aloud about her looks.
“We have a woman—a young woman who is… I’m not allowed to say it because usually it’s the end of your political career if you say it,” he said. “She’s a beautiful young woman.”
He continued, “Now, if you use the word ‘beautiful’ in the United States about a woman, that’s the end of your political career. But I’ll take my chances.” He then turned to Meloni: “You won’t be offended if I say you’re beautiful, right? Because you are.”
Meloni smiled awkwardly and nodded as Trump thanked her for attending the summit. The other leaders onstage stayed still, faces fixed forward.
It was the latest in a series of oddly personal remarks from Trump toward women in his orbit. On Monday, the 79-year-old president made a similar comment about White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, telling reporters aboard Air Force One, “That face… and those lips, they move like a machine gun.” He used nearly identical phrasing in an August Newsmax interview.
“She’s become a star,” Trump said of Leavitt. “It’s that face. It’s that brain. It’s those lips, the way they move. They move like she’s a machine gun… She’s a star and she’s great.”
Last week, Trump also complimented female journalist Brandi Kruse who said she had been cured of Trump Derangement Syndrome during a White House roundtable on Antifa. “Very attractive,” he said, before adding, “I’m glad you no longer have TDS. I feel very good about that.”
Trump’s compliment toward Meloni came amid rising economic tension between the U.S. and Italy. Just days before their meeting, Trump hit Italian pasta makers with a 92 percent tariff—on top of the existing 15 percent duty—prompting backlash in Rome.
“Pasta is a symbol of Italy and these tariffs are an affront to national pride,” analyst Francesco Galietti told The Times. “Producers will be telling Meloni, ‘You said you had Trump on speed dial, so do something.’”
Trump and Meloni, who share nationalist and anti-immigration sensibilities, have long been close allies. Meloni was the only European head of state to attend Trump’s inauguration in January and has been dubbed “Europe’s Trump Whisperer.”
At a White House gathering in August, Trump was caught on a hot mic telling Meloni, “You look fantastic.” She later returned the favor, praising his handling of reporters.
The post Trump, 79, Awkwardly Tells World Leader She’s Beautiful appeared first on The Daily Beast.
