Emmanuel Macron has lost a friend in Keir Starmer. The French President paid tribute to the outgoing British Prime Minister last week, describing him as a man of ‘dignity, decency and courage’.

When one door closes another one opens, and while Starmer was organising the removal vans, Macron was welcoming Giorgia Meloni to the Côte d’Azur. Last week’s Franco-Italian summit was the first of its kind since 2020; Meloni was elected prime minister two years later.

For Macron, she posed a threat to European ‘values’ because her party had its roots in postwar fascism

Her victory did not go down well with Macron and his centrist government. France’s prime minister in 2022, Elisabeth Borne, offered no congratulatory words for Meloni on becoming Italy’s first female premier. Instead, she sniffed that ‘in Europe we have values, and that each State must respect these values – the rule of law, human rights, abortion rights’.

For Borne, and Macron, Meloni posed a threat to European ‘values’ because her party, the Brothers of Italy, had its roots in postwar fascism. She was also reviled by Europe’s progressive elite because she dared question their shibboleths on uncontrolled immigration and the ‘LGBT lobby’.

These differences seem to have been patched up, and there were hugs and kisses all round when the pair met last week. The main topic discussed was their shared desire to establish a multinational coalition in Lebanon by the end of this year to replace the United Nations Interim Force. Its mandate expires on 31 December and Macron said a coalition was necessary to ‘strengthen the sovereignty of Lebanon and its armed forces’ in order to prevent further regional tensions. Meloni and Macron also exchanged views on immigration and the reopened Tenda tunnel linking the two countries.

Macron made light of their ups and downs over the years, joking with reporters under a burning sun that ‘there’s nothing glacial about it anymore’. He said that he and Meloni ‘defend the interests of our countries, but we do so in a respectful and committed manner’.

With that in mind, Meloni trod carefully when asked about Marine Le Pen, the leader of France’s right-wing National Rally party. Le Pen will discover next week whether she has been successful in overturning her five-year disqualification from political life. If she has persuaded the appeal judges that she is innocent of misusing EU funds, Le Pen will be able to contest next spring’s presidential election.

Meloni said that while she had ‘respect’ for Le Pen, she didn’t know enough about the case to comment further. She wasn’t so restrained last year when Le Pen received her punishment. ‘No one who cares about democracy can rejoice in a sentence that affects the leader of a large party and takes away representation from millions of citizens,’ she proclaimed.

What might be behind this new-found friendship between Meloni and Macron? Domestically, the French President is increasingly irrelevant and whenever he appears on television for an interview, viewers switch off in their droves. The French no longer give a hoot what Macron says. Why should Meloni?

She needs him, or more specifically France, as an ally against two foes: the EU and Donald Trump. There is growing tension within the EU bloc as the 27 countries attempt to finalise a budget agreement by December. A proposal to trim the €2 trillion budget by about 2 per cent (€32.8 billion) for the period 2028 to 2034 was rejected by fiscally conservative countries such as Germany and the Netherlands because it was too meagre. But other countries, notably Italy, Spain and Poland, oppose drastic cuts, particularly if they may involve farmers’ subsidies and regional grants.

France is yet to take a firm position and Meloni wants to win Macron over to her camp as the budget negotiations intensify in the coming months. There is also bickering within the bloc about how best to repay the EU economic recovery package set up in the wake of the Covid pandemic. Italy, France and Greece want to repay it through rolling debt, but Germany and the Netherlands are opposed to more common borrowing.

As for Trump, Meloni is no longer Europe’s golden girl in the eyes of the American President after their undignified ruckus at last month’s G7 meeting in Evian. Trump mocked Meloni for ‘begging’ him for a photo, a claim ridiculed by Meloni. ‘Italy and I never beg,’ she retorted.

There is more to it than just a photo-op, of course, such as Italy’s low defence spending, Meloni’s lack of support for Trump’s war in Iran, and Washington’s criticism of the Pope earlier this year.

Trump mocked Meloni for ‘begging’ him for a photo. ‘Italy and I never beg,’ she retorted

Last October Meloni was seen laughing on stage, along with Starmer, when Trump poked fun at Macron during the Gaza Peace Conference. Another of Macron’s governments had just collapsed and Trump couldn’t resist a dig at the beleaguered President. Now Meloni is in Trump’s sights, and she knows that in Macron she will find an ally. No European leader has been mocked more by Trump than Macron, although he makes himself an easy target what with being slapped by his wife in public and giving speeches in sunglasses.

The French public have scant sympathy for Macron; they may not think much of Trump but they think even less of their own President. Meloni, on the other hand, is looking to boost her domestic standing ahead of next year’s general election. Seventy-seven per cent of Italians have a negative view of the man in the White House, so she has little to lose by her tiff with Trump. Meloni’s approval rating has fallen from 57 per cent in 2023 to between 35 per cent and 44 per cent this year, which nonetheless remains more than double the level of Macron’s popularity in France.

The only French politician who can match Meloni’s approval ratings is Jordan Bardella, the 30-year-old president of the National Rally, and the man who will represent the party next year in the event that Le Pen’s appeal fails.

Bardella was born in the Parisian suburbs  to Italian parents and is currently dating an Italian princess, Maria Carolina di Borbone delle Due Sicilie. In a recent interview he expressed his concern about Trump’s ‘erratic’ behaviour and warned he could be a -‘danger for Europe’.

In the same interview Bardella was asked to name his favourite Italian: Meloni or Maria? Maria Carolina, Bardella replied, laughing, though he hastened to add that he was a fan of Meloni’s politics. She has brought stability and élan to Italy, and if his party wins power next year, she will be ‘an indispensable partner’.

Perhaps in courting Meloni, Macron is simply smoothing the way for Le Pen’s party.