Rutte: 500 US flights from Italia against Iran; government denies this

According to the PD’s foreign affairs spokesperson, Giuseppe Provenzano, Rutte’s statements ‘require immediate clarification from the government’, because Meloni ‘had assured that Italy would not be involved’ in ‘Trump and Netanyahu’s illegal war against Iran, which runs counter to our principles and interests’. According to Rutte, the MP adds, Europe “has been transformed into a platform for projecting American power – that is, Trump’s logic of power, the law of the strongest, in violation of international law”. The Prime Minister “has a duty to urgently clarify these serious statements”.

The M5S was quick to respond with a harsh reaction, with its leader Giuseppe Conte attacking: ‘The fairy tales spun by the Government and its cheerleaders are crumbling. Rutte’s words confirm what we have always maintained. Trump’s is merely a call to order for a government that has always said yes: 500 aircraft took off from Italia for an illegitimate war in Iran, into which Netanyahu dragged Trump and which has severely damaged the Italian economy.” The former prime minister also believes that “it is only right that President Meloni should come and provide the necessary clarifications to Parliament and the nation”.

It is attempting to quell the storm of controversy, which Crosetto’s ministry has branded as ‘pointless and specious’, whilst not holding back on its criticism of Rutte. ‘The Ministry of Defence,’ reads a statement, ‘reiterates unequivocally that Italia, and the Ministry of Defence, has always acted in full compliance with the Constitution, international treaties, parliamentary directives and the agreements governing the presence and use of allied bases on national territory, without authorising or permitting any activities outside the scope of current provisions’.

As Crosetto clarified in Parliament, the ministry continues, ‘the Government has done exactly as it stated to both Houses: only technical and logistical activities – not kinetic ones – have been authorised, within the framework of the procedures set out in existing agreements. On the occasions when a request was put forward that fell outside this scope, as is well known, Italy did not grant authorisation’. The case in question is the now-famous ‘no’ to Sigonella, for which Trump has repeatedly criticised Meloni in his recent tirades.

The ministry goes further. “It is surprising that the NATO Secretary-General, who has nothing to do with Operation Epic Fury, should present an account that conveys a completely misleading message by confusing the types of authorised flights. A simple check at source would have been enough to obtain an accurate picture of what happened (and what happens every day): Italia authorises only those flights provided for in the treaties, which completely exclude kinetic activities. As it has always done, and as it will continue to do under the current agreements.”

Later, a NATO official clarified that the Secretary-General had wished to emphasise that the allies, including Italia, ‘have implemented the existing bilateral agreements on military bases and overflights’. A few hours later, a spokesperson provided further clarification: “The type of support to which Secretary-General Mark Rutte was referring relates to logistics or technical assistance.”

A clarification that sheds more light on Rutte’s intention: to try to smooth over the differences between the two sides of the Atlantic ahead of his face-to-face meeting with Trump. However, this fails to take into account just how ‘explosive’ the issue is within each country, and in Italia in particular. There, rearmament and, above all, closeness to Trump are becoming increasingly unpalatable with each passing day. Both Crosetto and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani have nevertheless stated that they are willing to report to Parliament.

The US Ambassador to Italia, Tilman J. Fertitta, has also sought to play down the fallout from yet another incident: speaking to Sky T24, he said that Meloni ‘has done an excellent job in Italia over the past five years and has led Italia to become a world leader, and she is held in high regard. ‘I think Italians are intelligent and will continue to make the right decisions regarding their leadership.’ A full-blown endorsement.