ANKARA, Turkey \u2014 Despite being singled out for sharp criticism by US President Donald Trump at the NATO Summit, Italy\u2019s Giorgia Meloni doubled down on her government\u2019s refusal to let Washington use bases for military operations in the war against Iran.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the bases, it\u2019s not as though we\u2019ve been changing course from one day to the next \u2014 we\u2019ve had a very clear line since the beginning of the conflict in Iran, and we are maintaining that,\u201d the prime minister told reporters on the closing night of the summit here in Ankara, after the US had restarted its bombing campaign<\/a> against the Islamic Republic. \u201cWe are not participating in attacks against Iran, and we will not participate in attacks against Iran.\u201d <\/p>\n In March, at the opening of hostilities, Rome reportedly<\/a> denied a request from the US military to land an aircraft at the Naval Air Station Sigonella in Sicily before it was expected to fly to the Middle East.<\/p>\n The use of military infrastructure by American troops in Italy is governed by bilateral defense agreements established over 50 years ago that allow them to use certain facilities, but only under strict guidelines.\u00a0Under Italian law, these are described as technical authorizations that grant permission for logistical purposes, generally pertain to non-kinetic activities, and are assessed<\/a> on a case-by-case basis.<\/p>\n Italy has been among a list of European countries, including the UK, that have previously affirmed their refusal to be drawn into direct conflict with Tehran. In a Senate address on March 11, Meloni said that her country is \u201cnot at war, and we do not want to enter a war.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump, however, has lambasted allied nations that rebuffed US requests related to the Iran war, saying they came up short when he was \u201ctesting\u201d their loyalty<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cItaly turned us down, Germany turned us down, and France turned us down,\u201d Trump said shortly after arriving in Ankara as part of a broadside against all of NATO. \u201cWhy are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars when they\u2019re not there for us? We\u2019ve always been there for them.\u201d (Trump left the summit speaking much more fondly<\/a> of the alliance.)<\/p>\n