Giorgia Meloni, the prime minister of Italy, and Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada, engaged in an uncommon display of open conflict on Friday. The two world leaders were arguing while they were in Japan's Hiroshima for the Group of Seven (G7) leader summit. According to reports, this argument was over LGBTQ rights.

According to Bloomberg, the dispute arose after Trudeau publicly lambasted Meloni and Italy just before private negotiations.

Canada is concerned about certain of Italy's stances on LGBT rights, but Trudeau said he was looking forward to speaking with you.

Meloni appeared to be irritated and bristling after Trudeau's remark. She later claimed the Canadian prime minister was a "victim of fake news" and even suggested he was a "bit rash" in his comments while speaking to reporters following the behind-closed-doors meeting. 

Speaking in Italian, Meloni added that he presumably now realised that what is written about her doesn't reflect her reality as a result of their conversations. 

The Canadian prime minister also expressed his worries about LGBTQ rights in Italy during the discussion, according to a statement issued by Justin Trudeau's office. The message went on to say that the Italian prime minister had defended her country's stance and said that they were adhering to court decisions pertaining to LGBTQ issues.

In her remarks to the media, Meloni emphasised that she had not altered any of Italy's current laws pertaining to LGBTQ matters.

Meloni's far-right-leaning administration ordered city councils in March to stop registering both parents in same-sex unions. They were told to only acknowledge the biological parent, instead.

Gay rights activists criticised the action as "homophobic". Alessia Crocini, the president of Rainbow Families, a non-profit group "supporting LGBTQ+ parents and their children," remarked at the time that the action revealed the bigotry of the Meloni government.

"This government is the ultimate homophobic expression."

"Meloni contends that parental involvement is essential for a child's healthy development, despite the contrary findings of decades of research. Thousands of families with two same-sex parents find it offensive, she added.

Even though Meloni has previously said that every child has a right to a mother and a father, Italian law does not recognise same-sex parents.

She added that those who identify with a gender other than the one that was given to them at birth are victims of ideology. The Italian prime minister declared in a March magazine interview that "being a man or a woman is rooted in who we are, and can't be changed."