U.S. Ambassador Tilman Fertitta Faces Protests on Venice Yacht Visit
Protesters criticized the 117-meter yacht as an unwelcome display of U.S. wealth and influence during a 13-region diplomacy tour, organizers said.
- On Friday, U.S. Ambassador Tilman Fertitta arrived in Venice aboard his 117-meter yacht, Boardwalk, launching the 'Freedom 250 Coastal Diplomacy' tour marking American independence's 250th anniversary amid immediate protests.
- Fertitta, a billionaire businessman appointed by President Donald Trump, is touring 13 Italian regions to celebrate 'our shared history, our economic partnership, and the cultural bonds' that strengthen U.S.-Italy ties.
- Activists from the Morion social centre unfurled a banner reading 'Venezia non si Usa'—'Venice is not to be used'—echoing protests against Jeff Bezos's 2025 wedding and reflecting broader opposition to U.S. policies.
- Italy's Green and Left Alliance accused the government of diverting police to act as 'bodyguards' for Fertitta, while authorities tightened security ahead of Saturday's Redentore festival.
- Fertitta's visit navigates a cooling relationship between Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni and Trump, whose social media attacks have strained ties once seen as a close European political alliance.
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The opposition questions the use of public resources to escort the superyacht of billionaire Tilman Fertitta, a close friend of Trump, through various ports in the country.
Tilman Fertitta travels thirteen Italian ports in a "diplomatic cruise" for 250 years in the United States, between protests in Venice and criticism of the escort that protects his boat
The "Freedom 250 Coastal Diplomacy tour" that the American ambassador to Italy Tilman Fertitta has undertaken to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Constitution of the United States of America, and the controversy that...
Tilman Fertitta is a billionaire, Trump confidant and ambassador to Italy. With his huge yacht, he is now making a stopover in the lagoon city. What he calls "coastal diplomacy" is not well received by many people - diplomatically speaking. Nevertheless, the ambassador continues to tour.
Policemen on speedboats and jet skis secured the boardwalk while docking in Venice, then dozens of policemen had to shield the superjacht from protesters on land. On board: US ambassador Tilman Fertitta.
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