France and Italy have also shown reluctance to support American-Israeli operations against Iran, following Spain, sources said on Tuesday in a context of growing divisions between Europe and the United States, despite being allies within NATO.
A few days after President Donald Trump called his European allies within NATO “weak” for their lack of support for American war efforts, he again targeted some countries, including France.
“The France did not allow the planes bound for Israel, loaded with military equipment, to fly over (its) territory. France was NOT VERY HELPFUL concerning the ‘Butcher of Iran,’ who was successfully eliminated! The United States will REMEMBER this!!!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social social network.
A Western diplomat and two sources familiar with the decision confirmed that France did not authorize Israel to use its airspace to transport American weapons destined for the war against Iran.
This is the first time that Paris has made such a refusal since the beginning of the war in Iran on February 28, the two sources added.
“We are surprised by this tweet,” said an Elysée official. “France has not changed its position since day one and we confirm this decision which is in line with the French position since the beginning of this conflict.”
Italy, on the other hand, refused to allow American military planes to stop at the Sigonella air base in Sicily before heading to the Middle East, according to a source familiar with the decision, confirming an article in the Corriere delle Sera newspaper.
The journal did not specify when the planes were supposed to land. It reported that the authorization was denied because the United States had not requested it in advance and Italian military officials had not been consulted, as required by the treaties governing the use of American military facilities in the country.
Spain announced on Monday that it had closed its airspace to American planes participating in strikes against Iran, further deepening the rift with Washington after already refusing to use its bases in the conflict.
Spain will only authorize the use of its bases if it serves the “collective defense” of NATO allies, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles added on Tuesday, specifying that the refusal to allow the use of Spanish airspace by American planes involved in the conflict with Iran has been in effect since the beginning of the war on February 28.
At the beginning of the month, furious about Madrid’s refusal to use Spanish bases, President Trump declared that the United States would end all trade exchanges with Spain.
Madrid is not afraid of retaliation, responded Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares in an interview on the public TV channel TVE.
“We are absolutely not afraid. How could a country fear anything when it defends international law, world peace, and the United Nations Charter? In what kind of world would we live if those who should be afraid are those who respect the law?” he added.
Britain was not spared by President Trump, who called the British useless at a time when Buckingham Palace confirmed that King Charles III and Queen Camilla would visit the United States for a state visit at the end of April.
“To all those countries that cannot supply kerosene because of the Strait of Hormuz, such as the United Kingdom, which refused to participate in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion for you: first, buy from the United States, we have plenty, second, find the courage you lack, go to the strait and TAKE IT, plain and simple,” the President wrote on Truth Social.
In retaliation for the attack launched on February 28 by the United States and Israel, Iran effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s maritime transportation of oil passes.
This blockade has caused global oil prices to soar, forcing an increasing number of countries to adopt measures to protect their economies and leading to a downward revision of growth forecasts worldwide.
Reported by Angelo Amante and Giselda Vagnoni in Rome, Charlie Devereux and Emma Pinedo in Madrid, and John Irish in Paris; French version edited by Benoit Van Overstraeten, translated by Bertrand Boucey.
