JD Vance has sparked indignation after trying to joke with the Italian Prime Minister that she have called him a "jerk" but he wouldn't know because he can't speak the language. The gaffe-prone US politician made the awkward remark which seemingly exposed his own ignorance of languages, while at the same time appearing to question how genuine his host's welcome was.

Mr Vance arrived is in Rome today (Friday) for meetings at the Vatican and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, fresh off the Italian leader’s visit to the White House a day earlier. Ms Meloni and Mr Vance were posing for an Oval Office-style meeting for the cameras when she explained she had said Italy is "proud" to have a "special relation" with the US and the Trump administration. Nodding, Mr Vance replied: "Great, well thank you, Prime Minister Meloni, it's wonderful to see you again. I hope that's exactly what you said."

He then looked up to the assembled press pack and added: "Of course she could have called me a jerk, and I wouldn't know... but it would be in the most beautiful language imaginable."

Prime Minister Meloni politely chuckled at Mr Vance's undiplomatic choice of language, but the reaction on social media has been far more scathing.

One person wrote simply on X, "you are a jerk", before another added, "if she had done, it would not have been an offence but just the reality".

Someone else quipped that the Mr Vance was an "embarrassment", before an additional commenter claimed a popular Google search today as the Italian word for an "a**hole".

It's not the first time Mr Vance's unusual style of diplomacy has sparked outrage. During a meeting with President Zelensky, the vice president was mocked for repeatedly saying the Ukrainian leader should say "thank you" more.

More recently Mr Vance sparked an international spat with China after he said: "We borrow money from Chinese peasants to buy the things those Chinese peasants manufacture."

Even Britain hasn't escaped Mr Vance's off-colour canon of insults, during another Oval Office encounter the 40-year-old tried to suggest to Sir Keir Starmer that the UK doesn't have free speech.

The British Prime Minister firmly put down the spurious remark by reminding Mr Vance "we've had free speech for a very long time, it will last a long time, and we are very proud of that".

During his visit to Italy Mr Vance is scheduled to meet with the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the White House said.

No meeting with Pope Francis has been announced, as the 88-year-old has sharply cut back his work schedule as he recovers from a near-fatal case of double pneumonia.