Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Rome on Thursday for evening talks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
She welcomed Zelensky to her official residence for their discussion, television footage showed.
Meloni has been one of the determined supporters of Ukraine in Kiev's fight against Russia's war since she took office at the end of 2022.
However, of all EU leaders, she is also seen as the one with the closest ties to the circle of US President-elect Donald Trump.
While the US has been Ukraine's most important ally since the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022, Trump has repeatedly threatened to withdraw aid to Kiev.
Meloni has asserted in the past that the US would not abandon Ukraine in its defensive struggle against Russia.
"Trump has the ability to balance diplomacy and deterrence. I predict it will be the same this time," she said, among soaring concerns in Kiev that Trump might stop Washington's support for Ukraine once he takes power.
Trump, who takes office on January 20, has said he wants to end Russia's war on Ukraine as quickly as possible, without mentioning how this is to be achieved.
Trump has also failed to state whether in his view, Ukraine should cede territory to Russia in order to end the fighting.
