Italian PM Giorgia Meloni calls Winter Olympics protesters “enemies of Italy,” echoing Trump’s divisive playbook. Is Europe witnessing the rise of ‘Trumpification’ in Italian politics?

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Giorgia Meloni has called protesters at the Winter Olympic Games the enemies of Italy — a kind of shortcut we often see in Donald Trump’s interventions.

Is the Italian prime minister, replicating Trump’s recipe for success?

Hi, I’m Léa Marchal, and I make sure you are briefed on the most important things happening across Europe.

Over the weekend, thousands of people took part in protests in Milan as the Winter Olympic Games were opening.

Marchers criticised the environmental impact of the Olympic Games in the ski resort of Cortina. Installations are indeed pumping huge quantities of water from the mountains in order to produce artificial snow and ice blocks.

But protesters were also unhappy with the presence of American ICE agents in Italy. As a reminder, ICE is the US border control agency, and some of its agents are accused of killing two people in Minneapolis in January.

How come the ICE, which is supposed to protect the US from illegal migrants, is present in Italy?

It is actually common for countries to send delegations to support the security efforts surrounding the Olympic Games. 

This time, however, the US chose to send members of the highly controversial ICE — which was not the case during the Paris Olympic Games two years ago.  

For many protesters, this specific police force has no place at the Olympic Games.

Italian prime minister is not so much concerned about the ICE presence. However, the images of protesters clashing with the police during the weekend, is one that undermines her country’s image abroad, she expressed.

On Sunday, she called protesters “the enemies of Italy and of the Italian people” in an Instagram post.

She shared a video of clashes that was first posted by the US conservative channel Fox News.

Are we witnessing what is often described as Trumpification?

Jus as Trump wants to make America great again, Giorgia Meloni  wants to be admired and respected, as she put it herself.

So when a bunch of Italian nationals criticise their own nation in front of the whole world, her strategy is to point at them actively, instead of showing a more positive image of unity.

This is something Donald Trump could have done himself. 

In fact, he also used this division strategy when facing critics in the framework of the Olympic Games. He called US Olympic participant Hunter Hess “a real loser” after Hess, who was competing in skiing events, openly criticised the US border control agency ICE.

The US president has long relied on this kind of divisive strategy — and Giorgia Meloni appears to be drawing inspiration from it. 

She shares many of Donald Trump’s views and has also cultivated a close relationship with him. 

She is one of the few European leaders for whom Donald Trump has expressed open respect and admiration.

In return, an in a familiar display of flattery toward Donald Trump, she personally suggested that he should be considered for the Nobel Peace Prize.

This carefully cultivated friendship is now yielding results. US vice-president JD Vance, who was in Milan for the opening ceremony, praised Italy’s handling of the Games.

Maintaining this special relationship is of major importance, not least because Italy benefits significantly from transatlantic trade.

As a far-right leader, Donald Trump’s popularity in his own country is clearly an example Giorgia Meloni is watching closely — especially as she will face voters next year.

As things stand, she could run for a second term, and potentially more, since there is no limit on the number of terms a prime minister can serve in Italy — unlike in the United States.

And with that, we wrap up this episode.

Thanks for listening to Briefed, and see you tomorrow.