SAEDNEWS: The NATO Secretary-General stated that European bases played a vital role in the United States’ military operation against Iran. He pointed to thousands of combat flights launched from European territory, emphasizing that Washington would not have been able to conduct the operation without the alliance’s support.
According to the political service of Saednews, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, in a controversial interview with Sky News, revealed the direct and crucial role of European countries in supporting U.S. military operations against Iran. He explicitly admitted that during “Operation Epic Wrath,” between 4,000 and 5,000 air sorties were carried out from bases located in Europe toward Iran, and that the United States, without using Europe as a major power-projection platform, would never have been able to conduct this military operation.
These unprecedented remarks were made in response to a question about a possible reduction in Washington’s commitment to NATO, as well as in reaction to recent claims by Donald Trump. The U.S. president had previously alleged that NATO left Washington alone during the operation against Iran and described the alliance as a “paper tiger.” Rutte, referring to his recent meeting with Trump at the White House, rejected these claims and emphasized that the United States remains fully committed to the alliance due to extensive military and security interests. The NATO Secretary General stated that military bases in the United Kingdom, France, and other European countries operate under bilateral agreements in support of Washington’s interests, enabling the U.S. military to control key global chokepoints, monitor the movement of Russian nuclear submarines, and strike targets deep within territories.
These remarks come while European countries had previously strongly denied any involvement in U.S. actions against Iran. In response to this major disclosure, Esmail Baghaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described the statements as undeniable evidence of NATO’s active complicity in a military attack against a sovereign member state of the United Nations. Iranian diplomatic authorities stressed that this constitutes a clear violation of peremptory norms of international law and the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, and stated that NATO and all participating European governments must be held accountable for the consequences and damages of this act of war.
The controversial statement by the NATO Secretary General has sparked widespread reactions. What is your opinion on Europe’s role in this matter?
