Invite to president’s final state dinner shows Italy’s increasing importance in US relations and offers support to PM in run-up to make-or-break referendum

The White House will roll out the red carpet for the Italian prime minister, Matteo Renzi, and his wife, Agnese, on Tuesday, marking the last formal dinner of Barack Obama’s presidency and an important gesture in support of an embattled US ally.

Many details of the state dinner – such as whether Michelle Obama will stay true to her habit of wearing relatively unknown designers for such occasions or opt for an Italian classic such as Giorgio Armani or Valentino – are still under wraps.

What is known is that the food will be prepared by Mario Batali, an American chef known for refashioning Italian classics, and the entertainment will be provided by the singer Gwen Stefani.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Obamas welcomed Canadian leader, Justin Trudeau, and his wife, Sophie Grégoire, to a state dinner earlier this year. Photograph: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

In the US capital the glamorous affair is keenly anticipated, with Renzi labelled the “Justin Trudeau of Italy” by the style section of the Washington Post. But it is the substance of Renzi’s time in office that has endeared him to the White House.

Fears mount that Renzi may be next referendum casualty Read more

Following the UK’s vote to leave the European Union and tensions between Angela Merkel and Obama over US spying allegations and trade, Renzi has emerged as the most important and vocal champion of the US-European relationship.

The Italian prime minister is working closely with the US on supporting the UN-backed unity government in Libya, and has allowed the US to use American bases in Sicily to conduct drone strikes against Islamic State.

While the US president may be feeling confident that his fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton will be elected as his successor on 8 November, Renzi is facing tougher odds in a contest that will make or break his own political career.

The US has suggested that it supports Renzi and a yes vote in the 4 December referendum on constitutional reform in Italy, but polls are looking tough for the prime minister, who has staked his career on the outcome and promised to resign from politics if he loses.

Among other advisers, Renzi has hired Jim Messina, Obama’s former campaign manager. The Italian prime minister was also an early supporter of Clinton’s bid for the presidency, even while she was locked in a nomination battle with Bernie Sanders.

'This is the beginning of a new Europe' say Merkel, Renzi and Hollande Read more

Giovanni Orsina, professor of contemporary history at LUISS University in Rome, said the decision to invite Renzi to the state dinner in Washington signalled a clear belief that the Italian referendum would have consequences beyond Italy’s borders. The US ambassador to Italy, John Phillis, recently warned that a victory for the no camp would lead to political instability, and would be seen from abroad as weakening European cohesion.

“Italians, like others in the west, are becoming increasingly negative about other institutions meddling in Italian affairs. If voters feel pressed, they may end up doing the opposite,” Orsina said.

The trip to Washington will include a joint press conference with Obama – raising speculation that the pair could make a statement about Russia, a speech at Johns Hopkins University, a visit to Arlington national cemetery and a lunch arranged by the Center for American Progress, a Democratic thinktank.

The Italian entourage accompanying Renzi will include Armani himself – apparently there are no hard feelings after the designer criticised Renzi’s sense of style in 2014. Anti-corruption tsar Raffaele Cantone, Oscar winners actor Roberto Benigni and director Paolo Sorrentino, the mayor of the Italian island of Lampedusa, Giusi Nicolini, and Paralympic champion Bebe Vio, who won gold in fencing at the Rio Games, will also be there.

