Macron, Meloni meet to mend fences

French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni vowed to work jointly for a stronger Europe as they met on Tuesday following bilateral tensions over Ukraine, trade and relations with the United States.

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Their three-hour summit in Rome aimed to ease relations after hostility flared publicly in recent weeks, with officials close to Mr Macron and Ms Meloni privately or openly criticising their respective initiatives.

"The meeting highlighted strong convergences on the European agenda for competitiveness and prosperity, to be implemented ambitiously and swiftly," the leaders said in a joint statement, adding they agreed "on the necessary conditions for European companies to compete on an equal footing".

"This also applies to sectors in transition, such as the automotive and steel industries, which require strong European commitment, as well as to more advanced sectors like artificial intelligence, decarbonised renewable energy sources such as nuclear, and space," they said.