Rome: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Rome on Tuesday as part of the final leg of his five-nation tour and was welcomed warmly by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who greeted him with a social media post that quickly drew widespread attention online.
Sharing a photograph with PM Modi on X, Meloni wrote, “Welcome to Rome, my friend!” along with the Indian and Italian flag emojis. The picture, featuring the iconic Colosseum illuminated in the backdrop, rapidly went viral, garnering over a million views and thousands of reactions celebrating the camaraderie between the two leaders.
Soon after arriving in the Italian capital, Modi met Meloni for dinner and later visited the historic Colosseum. Sharing photographs from the evening on social media, the Prime Minister said the two leaders exchanged views on several global and bilateral issues.
“Upon landing in Rome, met PM Giorgia Meloni for dinner followed by a visit to the Colosseum. We exchanged perspectives on a wide range of subjects. Looking forward to our talks today, where we will continue the conversation on how to boost the India-Italy friendship,” Modi posted.
The Italy visit marks the concluding stop of Modi’s multi-nation diplomatic tour, which also included visits to Norway, the UAE, the Netherlands and Sweden.
During his stay in Italy, Modi is scheduled to meet Italian President Sergio Mattarella, hold bilateral discussions with Meloni and participate in several diplomatic engagements before returning to India on Wednesday.
This is Modi’s second visit to Italy in less than two years. He had previously travelled to the country in June 2024 to attend the 50th G7 Summit, where his interactions with Meloni sparked a viral social media trend popularly dubbed “Melodi.”
At the time, Meloni had shared a selfie and a short video with Modi, captioned “Hi friends, from #Melodi.” In the clip, the two leaders were seen waving at the camera as Meloni greeted viewers with, “Hello from the Melodi team.”
Responding to the post then, Modi had written: “Long live India-Italy friendship!”
