Italy is planning to send air defence aid to Gulf countries in the face of Iranian air strikes, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday.”Like the United Kingdom, France and Germany, Italy intends to send assistance to Gulf countries, specifically in the field of defence and in particular air defence,” Meloni told radio station RTL 102.5.”This is not only because they are friendly nations, but above all because tens of thousands of Italians live in the region and around 2,000 Italian troops are deployed there – people we want, and must, protect,” she added.