A diplomatic clash occurred Tuesday as President Donald Trump threatened to halt trade with Spain, accusing the European country of undermining United States and Israeli military action against Iran and failing to meet higher NATO defense spending targets.
During an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump said, “We’re going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don’t want anything to do with Spain.”
The warning followed remarks by Spain’s foreign minister, José Manuel Albares, who stated that Spain would not authorize the United States to use jointly operated military bases in southern Spain for operations that fall outside the United Nations charter. He also clarified that the bases were not used in the recent strike on Iran.
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Trump brushed aside that position. “We could use their base if we want. We could just fly in and use it. Nobody’s going to tell us not to use it, but we don’t have to,” he said.
Any attempt to suspend trade with Spain would face legal and structural hurdles. Spain conducts trade policy as part of the European Union, which negotiates agreements on behalf of its 27 member states.
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said any review of commercial arrangements must respect “the autonomy of private companies, international law, and bilateral agreements between the European Union and the United States.”
The European Commission signaled that it expects the United States to uphold the trade framework agreed with the European Union in Scotland last year after months of uncertainty linked to tariff measures.
“The Commission will always ensure that the interests of the European Union are fully protected,” said European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill.
The confrontation follows a recent decision by the Supreme Court of the United States limiting the president’s ability to impose sweeping tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. While the court ruled that the law does not authorize broad unilateral tariffs, Trump has argued that it allows him to pursue full embargoes instead.
Defense spending remains another point of friction. Trump criticized Spain for declining to commit to NATO’s proposed 5 percent defense expenditure benchmark. Spain has maintained it can meet military capability goals by allocating 2.1 percent of its gross domestic product.
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Spain, Trump said, is “the only country that in NATO would not agree to go up to 5%.” He added, “I don’t think they agreed to go up to anything. They wanted to keep it at 2% and they don’t pay the 2%.”
Merz supported that assessment, saying, “We are trying to convince them that this is a part of our common security, that we all have to comply with this.”
Spain defended its record, describing itself as “a key member of NATO, fulfilling its commitments and making a significant contribution to the defense of European territory,” according to the prime minister’s office.
At one point, Trump turned to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for his view on the scope of embargo authority.
“I agree that the Supreme Court reaffirmed your ability to implement an embargo,” Bessent said, adding that the United States Trade Representative and the Commerce Department would “begin investigations and we’ll move forward with those.”
The Treasury Department did not immediately respond to a request for further comment, the AP indicated in a report.
Sánchez has criticized the recent military actions by the United States and Israel against Iran, describing them as “unjustifiable” and “dangerous,” while also condemning Iran’s retaliatory strikes and urging dialogue.
Trump also criticized Spain’s leadership, saying, “Spain has absolutely nothing that we need other than great people. They have great people, but they don’t have great leadership.”
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The dispute over base access and defense spending marks another strain in relations between the United States and Spain, which have also diverged over Israel’s war in Gaza.