Italy has denied facilitating US attacks against Iran from its bases after remarks by NATO leader Mark Rutte about Rome’s participation.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday dismissed reports of “active use” of Italian air bases by the US for attacks on Iran. Meloni noted that Italy has offered the US only with technical and logistical help. Italy does not take part in the battle between the US and Iran, Meloni said during a Franco-Italian conference in France, Politico reported citing her comments.
Meloni added that NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte made “misleading remarks” about Italy’s involvement in the US-Iran war.
“Italy played a key role in the US-Iran conflict by allowing 500 US aircraft for strikes on Iran in support of operation ‘Epic Fury’,” said NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in an interview with Fox News late on Tuesday.
Italian Foreign Minister meets Araghchi
Italian Foreign Minister Antonia Tajani called Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi shortly after Meloni’s statements to clarify Italy’s position.
Tajani wrote on X about his chat with Araghchi.
“Italy has not participated in any military operation against Iran and has not authorised the use of its air bases for strikes against them,” Tajani said on X.
Italian Minister of Defence Guido Crosetto also gave a short overview of the number of flights in transit at the time of ‘Operation Epic Fury’.
He said on X:
“The number of flights in transit at Sigonella and Aviano during the Epic Fury period was much smaller than the number of flights in transit in 2019-2025.”
Mark Rutte’s comments explained by NATO official
Italy has roughly 120 U.S. military sites, including the Sigonella naval air station in Sicily and the Aviano air base in northern Italy.
A NATO spokesman subsequently told Reuters in response to a request for comment that Rutte’s remarks concerned only existing bilateral agreements under which allies including Italy enable military basing, technical and logistical assistance and overflight arrangements.
‘Such an act is deemed an act of hostility’, says Iran
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said allegations by NATO leader Rutte about US exploitation of Italian and Romanian airbases for strikes on Iran demands contemplation of international obligations by these nations.
“According to General Assembly Resolution 3314, the provision of territory by a state to a third state for the purpose of using that territory to carry out an act of aggression against another country is considered an act of aggression,” he posted on X.
Foreign Affairs of Iran spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei, sharing a post on X, said that NATO’s Secretary General explicitly named Italy and Romania as having participated in the aggression against Iran.
Italy maintains its earlier position
The Giorgia Meloni government had declared before that its air bases will be used for flights to the Middle East exclusively for logistical and technical missions covered by the bilateral treaty that governs the US military sites in Italy. Since the conflict between the US and Iran, Meloni’s government has kept to this position.
Reuters reported that Italy rejected permission for a U.S. military aircraft to land at the Sigonella air base in Sicily on April 7, 2026, while it was en route to the Middle East.
Some US aircraft were set to land at the facility in eastern Sicily on March 31 before heading on to the Middle East. Italy refused to allow the landing of these aircraft.
Italy Denies Allowing US to Use Airbases for Iran Strikes, Rejects NATO Chief’s Remarks
