Blazing row.
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been caught on a hot mic at the G7 summit revealing she’s given up smoking again.
The 49-year-old, the first woman to hold the office in Italy, previously said she had quit before taking up the habit again following her 2022 election.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, left, speaks with Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during a working session at the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, Wednesday, June 17, 2026. AP Photo/Thibault CamusDuring Monday’s meeting with fellow leaders in the Alpine French resort of Evian-les-Bains, Meloni confessed that she was struggling to stay alert after kicking the habit.
“I had to take three coffees,” she was caught saying, as she and the other dignitaries awaited the arrival of President Donald Trump.
“This morning? To wake up?” asked European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, before German Chancellor Friedrich Merz enquired if she had had a smoke as well.
“No, I stopped. One month ago,” replied Meloni, raising her hands in celebration to the sounds of gasps and congratulations from her fellow world leaders.
Merz then chimed in that he had been a “big” smoker before giving up.
(L-R) European Council President Antonio Costa, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during a working session at the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, June 16, 2026. THIBAULT CAMUS/POOL/EPA/ShutterstockCanada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney asked if Meloni was wearing a nicotine patch before grabbing his own arm.
Meloni said in her book that she started smoking again while in office, having given up for 13 years.
She added that her habit had previously helped her bond with other foreign leaders, including Tunisia’s President Kais Saied.
Giorgia Meloni, leader of Brothers of Italy, before a general election campaign rally by right-wing coalition made up of Brothers of Italy, Forza Italia, and League parties, in Rome, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 22, 2022. Bloomberg via Getty ImagesHer smoking has become a signature part of her image as Italy’s first female Prime Minister, leading to several humorous and memorable incidents.
Last year, during a joint summit, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joked that he would try to get her to quit.
“You look great. But I have to make you stop smoking,” Erdogan—who had vowed to make his country smoke-free—said at the October summit in Egypt.
“I know, I know. [But] I don’t want to kill somebody,” Meloni replied, prompting laughter from French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends a working session with G7 leaders and outreach partners on promoting economic growth during the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, June 17, 2026. REUTERS“It’s impossible,” said Macron.
After Monday’s summit, Meloni also met with Trump to calm tensions between Washington and the Vatican, after the President criticized Pope Leo for being soft on crime.
Meloni, the only EU leader to attend President Trump’s second inauguration, had called the comments about the first American pope “unacceptable,” but the pair were able to settle the dispute after a “clarification” meeting in the spirit of “Western unity,” according to sources.
