While French and Italian diplomats hoped to move past the latest incident, Matteo Salvini stood by his criticisms regarding the Ukrainian conflict and French domestic policies. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, meanwhile, remained silent. As of Monday, August 25, the tense atmosphere sparked by her deputy prime minister's remarks about French President Emmanuel Macron continued to weigh on the relationship between Paris and Rome. A new diplomatic crisis between France and Italy erupted following comments described as "unacceptable" by Paris, in which Salvini, on Wednesday, attributed to the French president a willingness to pave the way for deploying troops to Ukraine.

The far-right leader, who also serves as minister of transport and infrastructure, had responded to a journalist's question about France's supposed intentions in Ukraine by telling Macron to "hang on to the tram," using a local expression that roughly translates as "get lost" or "fend for yourself."

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