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NATO chief Mark Rutte has declared that Article 5 is not on the table after the alliance's air defenses shot down a ballistic missile over Turkish airspace yesterday.
Rutte said the incident was "serious" but "nobody is talking about Article 5."
Article 5 reportedly states that if a NATO ally is attacked by an armed attack, any other member of the Alliance will consider this as an armed attack against all members and will take such action as it deems necessary to assist the attacked ally.
Yesterday's incident marked the first time that Turkey, a member of the military alliance, has become involved in the Middle East conflict and raised the possibility of a major expansion involving its allies in the bloc.
Rutte added that NATO supported the US targeting Iran's nuclear and missile capabilities, as the country was "close to becoming a threat to Europe as well."
Meanwhile, Iranian drones have struck Azerbaijan on the 6th day of the war, threatening to drag another country into the widening Middle East conflict.
Video footage verified by foreign media shows an explosion taking place at an airport in the Nakhchivan enclave, which borders Iran. Another drone crashed near a school.
The defense ministry in Baku said it was "preparing the necessary retaliatory measures" after the drone attacks, adding that "These acts of aggression will not go unanswered."
Iran has long expressed concern that Israel, a close ally of Azerbaijan and a major arms supplier, could use Azerbaijani territory to stage attacks.
The war, which entered its sixth day on Thursday, has engulfed the entire region after Iran responded to US-Israeli attacks by striking major Gulf powers including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Earlier this morning, the Iranian military denied firing a missile towards Turkey, whose defense ministry said on Wednesday that a ballistic missile flew into its airspace before being destroyed by NATO air and missile defense systems.
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