Rutte Says US Aircraft Allowed to Use Allied Bases in Iran War, Italy to Ensure Technical and Logistics

ROME - Italy has ensured that its air bases are only used for technical and logistical purposes, following comments by Secretary-General Mark Rutte that Allies, including Italy, allowed their bases to be used by the United States in the attack entitled Operation Epic Fury against Iran.

Speaking to Fox News ahead of a meeting with President Donald Trump, Secretary-General Rutte responded to the US President's criticism of NATO allies' support by saying that Europe is in fact "a platform for projecting power for the United States."

"Five hundred US aircraft took off from US bases in Italy to support (Operation) Epic Fury. So, this is huge," said Secretary-General Rutte, launching Anadolu (25/6).

Secretary-General Rutte then said "country by country, ally by ally has provided their bases."

"That means thousands, between 4,000 and 5,000 planes take off from European bases to support Epic Fury," he said, quoted by Politico.

This received a harsh response from Italy. The government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni previously said that its air base was only used for US military logistical and technical flights as stated in bilateral agreements.

"Only flights that comply with the agreement; Rutte's message is completely wrong," the Ministry of Defense said in a statement, launching Politico from Il Sole 24 Ore.

"On the occasion when the request was made that was outside the scope (technical and logistical), as is known, Italy did not give authorization," the statement said.

It said authorization for the use of any base for combat missions must come from the government, which in turn needs to get approval from parliament.

Later, NATO spokeswoman Allison Hart later said Secretary-General Rutte's comments were actually about "logistics or technical support."

He said Rutte had "highlighted how Allies, including Italy, implement existing bilateral agreements in the context of basing and overflight."

In addition to Italy, Rutte also praised Romania, saying Bucharest's airport had reduced commercial traffic because military tanker operations required additional capacity.

It is known that President Trump has repeatedly criticized European allies for not providing adequate support for the US-Israeli war in Iran.

President Trump and PM Meloni themselves have been involved in open disputes in recent times, following Italy's criticism of not helping the US in Iran.