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The European Commission said on Wednesday it would make sure the European Union’s interests are fully safeguarded after the the White House threatened to cut off trade relations with Spain.
The Commission offered its support after United States President Donald Trump lashed out at Madrid for its refusal to allow the US military to use its bases to support its operations in and around Iran.
Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, Trump called the Spanish government “terrible”.
“We’re going to cut off all trade. We don’t want anything to do with Spain,” he said.
In response, EU Commission deputy chief spokesperson Olof Gill said: “We stand in full solidarity with all member states and all its citizens and, through our common trade policy, stand ready to act if necessary to safeguard EU interests.”
Later, Commission Vice President Stéphane Séjourné said that when it comes to trade policy, “Any threat against a member state is by definition a threat against the EU.”
Paris has also aligned with Brussels, with President Emmanuel Macron speaking to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Wednesday “to express France’s European solidarity in response to the recent threats of economic coercion,” according to an Élysée source.
Trump made his remarks in Washington in the presence of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who remained silent at the time but later said he wanted to avoid escalating tensions.
The relations between Trump and Madrid were already tense, as Spain has pushed back against the US president’s demands for NATO allies to increase their defence spending.
Sánchez said on X that he had also spoken with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa, who expressed their support.
“NO TO WAR. Yes to trade, cooperation, and prosperity,” he wrote.
The Commission’s response underscores that trade is a top EU competence, one where tensions with Washington have been high since Trump returned to power in 2025.
“Trade between the European Union and the United States is deeply integrated and mutually beneficial,” Gill added. “Safeguarding this relationship, particularly at a time of global disruption, is more important than ever and clearly in the interest of both sides.”
The EU-US trade deal clinched last summer remains frozen after MEPs halted its implementation following a US Supreme Court ruling last February declaring 2025 tariffs illegal.
Despite the uneven terms – 15% US tariffs on EU goods versus 0% EU duties on US industrial products – the Commission still sees the agreement as beneficial.