Italian troops will only be sent to Niger at the request of its government and any military mission will fully respect the country's sovereignty, Italy's foreign minister Angelino Alfano said on Tuesday.
"The mission can only be despatched if Niger's government requests it and on a consensual basis," Alfano told a conference on migration from Africa to Europe.
"Once we have Niamey's authorisation we will undertake whatever action is requested by Niger's government and which fully respects the country's sovereignty," Alfano said.
French public radio station RFI on 26 January quoted a local source as saying Niger's government had not been informed about the 470-strong military mission approved by Italy's parliament on 17 January and was not in favour.
Sources at the Italian foreign ministry immediately denied the RFI allegations about the Niger mission.
Italy's mission to Niger was announced on 28 December. The Italian soldiers are intended to reinforce US and French troops who are already on the ground in Niger and help the country better control its territory and borders, fight the illegal trafficking of migrants and ensure stability in the area.
The Italian government has said it considers Niger a "strategic" partner and in January opened an embassy in Niamey. The embassy is Italy's first in the Sahel region, which mostly African immigrants first cross to reach Libya and head to Europe.
More than 600,000 migrants have reached Italy across the Mediterranean in the past four years.
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