"There were indeed requests and they were rejected from the very beginning," said Colonel Michael Bauer, adding that any such request "is rejected when it involves a country that is at war." Austria has been a neutral state since 1955. It is surrounded by NATO members to the north, south, and east, while neutral Switzerland lies to the west. President of the United States Donald Trump criticized European members of the Transatlantic Alliance, such as France and Spain, which refused to allow the use of their airspace for the war against Iran. In mid-March, Switzerland, also citing its neutrality, announced that it had refused the use of its airspace. Additionally, the United States' requests regarding the war in Iran were previously rejected by Spain and Italy as well. Spain refused from the outset of the conflict to allow America to use bases on its territory for attacks on Iran, while a few days ago Italy did the same, prohibiting the use of its base in Sicily.