Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani firmly denied claims that U.S. military operations against Iran involved the use of Italian bases, directly contradicting recent remarks by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
Tajani issued the clarification during a telephone conversation on Thursday with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, according to a report by the Tasnim News Agency.
The Italian foreign minister categorically rejected the NATO chief’s comments, emphasizing that no domestic military bases were used for any strikes against Iran and pledging that such actions would not occur in the future. He further clarified that U.S. aircraft did not depart from Italian territory to conduct bombings and that the Italian government had never authorized any such operations.
Araqchi expressed appreciation for the phone call and the explanation, while emphasizing that Iran still expects an explicit and official public denial of the remarks from the Italian government.
