US Vice President JD Vance, who was in Italy to cheer the US team at the Winter Olympics, made a flirtatious remark to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.During a meeting with Vance, Meloni was speaking in Italian, and later, realising that he might not understand due to the language barrier, she said, “I know you didn’t know what I was talking about.”

Responding, Vance replied, “I have actually learned Italian since the last time I saw you.”Vance was on a weeklong visit combining sports and diplomacy, meeting Meloni at a time when US relations with Europe have become increasingly strained under President Donald Trump, who has shaken the rules-based order that has underpinned US foreign policy since World War II.The vice president began his day at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, watching the opening session of the three-day team figure skating competition with his family and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.Vance then headed to the Prefettura di Milano, a historic Milan palace now used as a municipal building, for a bilateral meeting with Meloni that lasted about an hour and was followed by a closed-door lunch.