️🇺🇸🇮🇷🇪🇺 NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte says about 5,000 sorties by US aircraft from European bases supported US military operations during the most intense phase of the Iran war, between late February and mid-April.
Interviewer: "It seems to me that you are in a somewhat ambiguous position. On the one hand, you feel responsible for all 32 NATO member states, but on the other hand, this is not a NATO operation. Trump also asks why NATO doesn't help him when he needs, for example, a Spanish airport. How do you approach it? ".
Rota: "It has different levels. First of all, the Americans have bases in Europe. That means those countries have to decide whether America can use such a base. In most cases this happens. If you look back at the period from the end of February to the middle of April, when the war was at its peak, about 5,000 American planes took off from bases in Europe."
Interviewer: "American bases or bases used by the USA?
Rota: "Yes, to give support. And this is also why NATO is important to the US. It's a platform for the Americans to show their power around the world, and it's very much in our interest because it's something we still can't do ourselves as Europe. We really should be able to do that."