Italy’s prime minister has addressed growing criticism of the repatriation of a Libyan warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court.

He hails a fantastic woman sweeping all before her in Europe. She praises a strong and shrewd defender of the West. Donald Trump and Giorgia Meloni are fast forging a new transatlantic "special relationship".

Elon Musk's brother Kimbal and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met briefly Friday at her Rome office, an Italian source said.

The Meloni government relies on the cooperation of the Libyan government to block the departure of migrants crossing the Mediterranean.

Giorgia Meloni’s presence at Donald Trump’s inauguration aimed to reinforce her status as a privileged interlocutor with the new US administration. But this position carries risks for Italy and the EU.

The Italian leader has the potential to serve as a key European ally in the quest for peace in Europe and the Middle East.

Caltagirone last year expanded his investments in Italy's financial sector and is now a key shareholder in bailed-out bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) and fund manager Anima Holding.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whose rise to power in Rome two years ago sparked panic among the European political establishment, may now be the continent’s best hope to have one of its own in the good graces of the Trump White House.

ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will attend U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday, officials from her office said on Friday, in a trip that should further strengthen her ties with the U.S. leader.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is one of just a handful of world leaders to have been invited to Mar-a-Lago since his election victory last November — but whether she can be Europe's "Trump whisperer" is more complicated.

But not all of the leading conservative populist parties in the world are the same — in rhetoric or on policy.

Opposition parties demand explanation after Osama Almasri Najim, suspected of murder, rape and torture, released from prison