Why Italy’s defence spending lags far behind
Despite Giorgia Meloni’s vocal criticism of Putin’s war
The mood when Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, met Donald Trump on April 17th could not have been sweeter. Mr Trump’s guest was “a great prime minister” doing “a fantastic job”. He was even “very proud to be with her”. When Ms Meloni slipped into MAGA-speak to suggest she and the president could “make the West great again”, he assented.
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This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Not from Mars”
Europe
April 26th 2025- France is a far healthier country than America
- Why Italy’s defence spending lags far behind
- Europe wants Sweden’s minerals. That’s more bad news for the Sami
- The Kremlin’s grey-zone war in the Black Sea shows its real intent
- America is selling a Ukraine peace plan. No one is buying, yet
- Europe’s reluctant reset with Turkey
From the April 26th 2025 edition
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Ukraine’s political infighting gets nasty
As Trump starves it of arms, there is turmoil inside the government
Turkey’s strongman is becoming Donald Trump’s point man
But renewed war with Iran would put the honeymoon with Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the test
Germany’s Bundestag bars AfD MPs from its football team
Could the sporting ban precede a political one?
An infestation of ticks menaces Istanbul
And mosquitos are a growing problem too
The sleeping policeman at the heart of Europe
Enforcement of EU law has become an afterthought
A pragmatic amnesty for separatists benefits Catalonia
But it carries costs for the rule of law