Mr Trump called the US partnership with Spain “a wasted cause” and threatened to cut off trade with the country.
US President Donald Trump lashed out at Spain on Wednesday at the NATO Summit in Turkey.
Mr Trump called the US partnership with Spain “a wasted cause” and threatened to cut off trade with the country while sitting beside NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
“We don’t want to do any trade business with Spain anymore, by the way,” he said, according to the BBC.
“Spain is a terrible partner in NATO. They don’t participate. They don’t pay,” he continued. “I don’t want anything to do with Spain. Cut off all trade with Spain, please, including visits.”
Watch them come running back. Oh, they’ll come running back,” he added.
He also revived his bid for the US to acquire Greenland, a demand that had caused tension between the US and NATO allies earlier in the year.
Mr Trump has been critical of NATO member countries, particularly Spain, over their response to the US war with Iran. Madrid, in March, refused to allow joint military bases on its territory for operations against Iran. The country was also vocal in its opposition to the war.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described the US and Israeli initial strikes on Iran as “unjustified” and a “dangerous military intervention” outside the realm of international law.
Mr Trump is also displeased by Spain’s refusal to increase defence spending to 5 per cent of its economic output (GDP). Mr Sanchez called this “unreasonable and counterproductive.” Spain spent 2 per cent of its GDP on defence in 2025.
The US President also accused Madrid of treating Mr Rutte “terribly,” while asking the NATO chief to stop carrying Spain.
“I mean, you sort of automatically carry [Spain] because you’re protecting an area,” the president said. “So they probably figured “they have to protect us, right?”
However, Mr Sanchez, after Mr Trump’s outburst at the summit, insisted relations with the US remain “very positive.”
He also claimed to have had an informal chat with Trump.
“We talked about the World Cup… there was no tension whatsoever. On the contrary, it was all very friendly,” he said.
