NATO may apply Article 5 against Iran, - Rutte
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has announced broad support among allies for Donald Trump's campaign against Iran's nuclear and missile capabilities and has not ruled out applying Article 5.
According to Censor.NET, this was reported in a publication by NEWSMAX.
Rutte stated that the Alliance is not directly involved in the operation against Iran.
"NATO is not involved," – he emphasized on the air of The Record With Greta Van Susteren program.
At the same time, Rutte noted that the allies actually support the US president's actions on a large scale and contribute to Washington's operations in the region aimed at destroying Iran's nuclear and missile capabilities.
Europe's concern over Tehran's actions
According to the secretary general, European states share concerns about Tehran's policies, particularly threats and assassination attempts associated with the Iranian regime.
"Here in Europe, we know the impact of Iran and the negative impact they can have," Rutte emphasized, mentioning the risks to the Iranian diaspora and threats to the Netherlands.
Security guarantees and Article 5
The head of the Alliance assured that NATO provides full protection of its territory.
"What we are doing at the moment as NATO is making sure that we, in a 360-degree way, defend every inch of NATO territory," he said.
As an example, Rutte cited an incident involving a missile threat directed at Turkey, which was neutralized by the Alliance's missile defense systems.
He also commented on the possibility of applying Article 5 of the NATO treaty, noting that the question of its activation remains deliberately vague.
"For good reasons, we always will stay very ambiguous about when Article 5 is triggered," said the secretary general, adding that if it is used, the allies will report it immediately.
Contacts with partners in the Middle East
Rutte added that he is in constant contact with partners in the Middle East, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait.
According to him, the Alliance is ready to contribute to strengthening their security amid attacks in the region.
Strikes on Iran
- As a reminder, on the morning of 28 February, Israel launched an operation to bomb the Iranian capital Tehran. This is a joint operation with the US armed forces.
- Israel called the operation against Iran "Roaring Lion," and the US called it "Epic Fury."
- US President Donald Trump said that the goal of the operation against Iran was to "destroy Iran's missile industry and navy" and "ensure that Iran cannot destabilise the world."
- Trump accused Iran of "financing and training" militants in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Hamas in Palestine.
- The Israel Defence Forces reported that it had deployed more than 200 fighter jets to strike 500 targets in Iran.
- On the evening of 28 February, a senior Israeli official told Reuters that Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had been killed that morning in an Israeli air strike on Iran. His body had already been found.
- US President Donald Trump later confirmed the death of Ayatollah Khamenei.
