NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Wednesday sought to ease transatlantic tensions by reminding the White House of European contributions to US operations in Iran but reignited a political row in Italy in the process.

Rutte, who is scheduled to meet US President Donald Trump later on Wednesday, highlighted broader European participation in maritime security efforts in the Strait of Hormuz, including preparations for demining operations during an interview with Fox News.

It came less than a week after US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth described European allies’ assistance towards the US’s operations in the Middle East as “shameful.”

Rutte also weighed in on Trump’s latest spat with Italy. Citing intelligence and operational data, he said that “around 500 US aircraft took off from American bases in the country to support the Epic Fury operation”.

But his intervention quickly backfired in Rome and reignited political debate over the extent of Italy’s involvement.

The comments reopened political tensions in Italy, with the opposition saying Rutte’s statement contradicts Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s narrative about limited involvement.

Giuseppe Provenzano, foreign affairs chief of the Democratic Party, called for “urgent clarification from the government,” saying Rutte’s remarks suggest Italy played a “massive role” in the war.

The Italian Defence Ministry then clarified that Italy has “always operated in full compliance with the Constitution, international treaties, parliamentary guidance and agreements governing the presence and use of allied bases.”

It added that “only technical and logistical, non-kinetic activities were authorised within the procedures established by existing agreements,” stressing that “a more in-depth review at the source would have been enough to provide a true picture of what has happened.”

In his interview, Rutte strongly backed Trump’s Iran policy, saying the president is doing “exactly what is needed” by targeting Iran’s nuclear capabilities, and warning that a nuclear-armed Iran would be an “exporter of chaos” and “terrorism,” with devastating consequences for the region and the world.

He also credited Trump’s pressure with accelerating a sharp rise in European defence spending, which he described as “staggering.”

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