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 Obama to welcome Renzi as key ally in Europe
But this week, more than five years later, Mr Obama is planning a far more lavish welcome for Mr Renzi, hosting him at a state dinner at the White House, possibly the last of his presidency.
The star-studded treatment is partly a reward to Mr Renzi for being one of Mr Obama’s most reliable allies in Europe. But it will also serve as an encouragement for the Italian premier, who is fighting for his political life. On December 4, Italians will go to the polls in a referendum on Mr Renzi’s flagship constitutional reforms, and the premier has threatened to resign if he is defeated.
“There is probably no leader of a large EU country who is more committed to the transatlantic relationship at the moment,” said one western diplomat in Rome. “So I suspect Obama will give Renzi a strong endorsement.” 
The kinship between Mr Obama and Mr Renzi is certainly ideological, since they both represent a dwindling band of moderate centre-left G7 leaders who have followed in the footsteps of Bill Clinton and Tony Blair.
But the connection is also based on policy: in recent years, Mr Obama has applauded Mr Renzi's reform agenda, while Mr Renzi has been a staunch supporter of the transatlantic trade deal, or TTIP, while other EU nations turned sceptical. Meanwhile, the two have jointly demanded an end to fiscal tightening in EU economic policy.
“The only two countries in the world that seem to be putting the spotlight on Germany’s obsession with austerity and Germany’s persistent attempts to run current account surpluses are Italy and the US,” said Erik Jones, a professor of European Studies at the School of Advanced International Studies in Bologna.
In the past, Libya has been a source of friction between Rome and Washington, but recently they have been working together to bolster the UN-backed national unity government in Tripoli. Italy has also stepped up its contributions to the anti-Isis coalition, assistance that is appreciated in Washington. Mr Obama has also been sympathetic to Italy’s struggles with the migration crisis that has seen 140,000 arrive on Italian shores so far this year.
And the thorny subject of Russia sanctions, where Italy is seen as resisting US efforts to mount more aggressive penalties against Moscow, appears to have been set aside, even as tensions over Syria mount. “There was always a fear that on the sanctions issue Italy was an outlier, but now our position is clear; any decision will be made together,” one Italian official said.
Meanwhile, Italy is sending 140 troops to Latvia as part of a Nato deployment close to the Russian border, triggering outrage at the weekend on the part of the mainly pro-Moscow opposition
It is, however, debatable whether Mr Renzi can use the state dinner with Mr Obama to bolster his domestic standing ahead of the referendum, with polls showing that he is trailing the “no” camp by a small margin.
“It will have a positive impact on a certain type of modern leftwing voter who maybe doesn’t love Renzi’s tones and positions but who could soften that judgment based on the relationship with Obama,” said Lia Quartapelle, a senior lawmaker on the foreign affairs committee from Mr Renzi's ruling Democratic party.
But Mr Jones said this should be managed in a subtle way or it could backfire — a possibility that US officials will be conscious of given Mr Obama’s high-profile speech against Brexit ahead of the UK vote.
“Renzi can take advantage of the photo-op and people will associate him with a nostalgic sense of hope and change. If he actually tries to sell it, he runs the real risk of antagonising those people who remember America influencing Italian politics during the cold war. They will mobilise around it and say, ‘look, this guy is the puppet of the US’,” Mr Jones said.

Some key details of the dinner are still under wraps, such as the full guest list and which Italian designers might dress Michelle Obama and Agnese Landini, Mr Renzi’s wife.
Regardless, the red carpet treatment will strengthen the idea that Mr Obama sees him as the most likely leader in Europe to continue his legacy, as long as he manages to win the referendum and stick around. “There is a generational factor at play, as well as a somewhat similar view of what Europe should be,” said Ms Dassù.