Trump Orders US Trade Cutoff With Spain at NATO Summit
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- Trump directed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to cut off all US trade with Spain, calling Madrid a 'terrible partner' in NATO and telling Bessent: 'Take it immediately, don't even talk to them.'
- Spain's two specific grievances cited by Trump: its refusal to let the US use its airspace and bases for the Iran war, and its rejection of NATO's new 5% of GDP defense spending target.
- Addressing NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump said 'Spain doesn't agree to anything, and you shouldn't carry them,' and Bessent replied 'Yes, sir' on the summit stage.
- Spain hosts two key US military installations — Naval Station Rota and Moron Air Base — that anchor the US military presence in southern Europe.
- A Pentagon email reviewed by Reuters in April had already outlined options to punish allies that failed to back US Iran operations, including suspending Spain from the alliance.
Why it matters: Spain hosts two of the US's most strategically important overseas military installations — Naval Station Rota and Moron Air Base — and an internal Pentagon email in April had already mapped concrete options including suspending Madrid from NATO. Bessent's on-the-spot 'Yes, sir' turns what could be dismissed as bilateral trade bluster into an alliance-level confrontation played out on the summit floor itself.
