Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani is heading to Syria to encourage the transition in the country following the ouster of President Bashar Assad by Islamist insurgents.

Trump spoke of a "shared cultural and political heritage" that dates back to ancient Rome in a 2019 news conference with the Italian president.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, one of the European leaders closest to Donald Trump, said on Thursday she believed the U.S. president-elect would defend Western interests once he took office and would not abandon Ukraine.

President Biden was set to meet Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Pope Francis during what would have been his last presidential trip abroad.

ROME (Reuters) - The United States has not submitted any formal request of extradition for an Iranian businessman Mohammad Abedini detained in Milan, Italy's justice minister said in an interview published on Thursday.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was briefly wrongfooted by a surprise question about ants on Thursday when she faced a grilling by Italian and foreign reporters lasting more than two hours. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The fate of an Italian journalist detained in Tehran and an Iranian engineer imprisoned in Italy on a U.S. warrant grew even more intertwined Friday as the Iranian awaits possible extradition to the United States to face charges he provided drone technology to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard corps.

An Italian journalist arrested and jailed in Iran since December has been freed and returned to Rome on Wednesday, even as a diplomatic spat between the two countries lingers over an Iranian held in Milan.

The United States and Italy both booked tickets to the United Cup quarterfinals on Tuesday, with Coco Gauff setting a marker for her rivals ahead of next month's Australian Open.

Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni did not discuss Rome's talks with Elon Musk's SpaceX over the possible supply of its Starlink services during her weekend visit to the United States, the PM's office said.

Canada destroyed Japan 17-0 in the final game of the round robin at the women's U18 world hockey championship. But now that semifinals are set, don't expect the Czech Republic to be pushovers despite the fact the Canadians are considered favourites on Saturday in Vantaa,