Donald Trump has once again turned up the heat on Spain, as he arrived for the NATO summit in Ankara. The US president said on Wednesday that he had instructed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to “cut off all trade” with Spain, which he described as a “terrible” partner within the Atlantic Alliance.
“Spain is a wasted cause. We don’t want to do any trade business with Spain anymore,” Trump said.
The remarks came during a joint appearance before the press with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Trump once again took aim at Pedro Sánchez’s government over its refusal to raise defence spending to 5% of GDP, a demand Washington has been making of its European allies in recent months.
Spanish government “calm”
From the Moncloa palace, sources close to the prime minister insist they were prepared for this scenario and say they are taking the tycoon’s snubs with relative “calm”. The government had put together a solid set of talking points, and Pedro Sánchez travelled to Ankara with a raft of data to respond to Donald Trump’s attacks.
Despite US demands, Spain points out that it has already reached 2% of GDP in defence spending, that it now ranks seventh among NATO’s 32 members, and that NATO’s own technical projections suggest spending 2.1% will be enough for it to meet its commitments.