US to cut trade ties with Spain, Trump says

WASHINGTON - The United States is set to cut off all trade relations with Spain after Madrid refused to increase its defence spending to five per cent of gross domestic product. U.S. President Donald Trump made the announcement at a White House news conference.

The President recalled that Spain was, in his words, the only country within the North Atlantic Alliance that refused to support an increase in defence spending to the level of five percent of GDP. „They have great people, but they don't have great leadership. And as you know, they were the only country in NATO that didn't agree to a five percent increase. I don't think they want to agree to any increase,“ Trump said at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House.

According to the White House chief, Spain has sought to maintain its spending at two percent of GDP, which is the alliance's current target, and even this threshold has not been met in the long term.

„They wanted to leave it at two per cent and the two per cent doesn't apply anyway, so we're going to cut off all trade with Spain. We want nothing to do with Spain,“ the US president added.

The issue of defence spending has long been a sensitive topic within NATO. The United States has repeatedly called on European allies to invest more in defence, particularly in the context of the ongoing war in Ukraine and growing tensions with Russia. At recent alliance summits, there have been proposals to further increase spending beyond the current two per cent of GDP, but five per cent would represent an unprecedented commitment.

Spain has gradually increased its defence spending in recent years, but according to available data, it is still below the alliance's target of two percent of GDP.Madrid argues that it needs to balance security priorities with budgetary stability and social spending.

Any disruption in trade relations could have significant impacts on both economies. The United States is one of Spain's key trading partners outside the European Union, with tens of billions of dollars of trade per year. However, it is unclear what specific steps the US administration would take and whether such a measure would stand up to international trade law and World Trade Organisation obligations.

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