Overview

• Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is the first EU leader to meet with President Trump following his announcement of 20% tariffs on EU exports, which were later paused for 90 days.
• Meloni seeks to leverage her rapport with Trump to advocate for the EU's 'zero-for-zero' tariff elimination proposal on industrial goods.
• The meeting comes as Italy faces pressure to protect its €40 billion trade surplus with the U.S. while maintaining solidarity with the EU's collective stance on trade negotiations.
• Trump is expected to press Meloni on increasing Italy's NATO defense spending, currently at 1.5% of GDP, toward the alliance's 2% target.
• European allies have expressed concerns that bilateral talks could undermine the EU's unified approach to resolving the tariff dispute.