US President Donald Trump directed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to “cut off all trade with Spain” after the country denied access to its military bases for his bombing campaign against Iran.
“I told Scott to cut off all dealings with Spain,” Trump said Tuesday during a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House.
Trump did not explain how he planned to follow through with that threat, which could prove particularly difficult since the US has a trading relationship with the broader European Union. Later, he suggested he had the power to impose a full embargo on goods from the country, though did not indicate explicitly that he planned to do so.
“Spain has absolutely nothing that we need other than great people,” Trump said. “They have great people, but they don’t have great leadership.”
Repeated frustration with Sanchez
Trump has repeatedly expressed frustration with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez for rebuffing his call on NATO allies to raise defence spending to 5% of gross domestic product. Last October, the US president said that Spanish should receive a “trade punishment” over the disagreement.
“I could tomorrow stop — or today, even better — stop everything having to do with Spain, all business having to do with Spain, have the right to stop it, embargoes, do anything I want with it,” Trump continued. “And we may do that with Spain.”
Bessent in the meeting affirmed his belief Trump had the legal ability to embargo Spanish goods, without saying if he would pursue that path.
Trump also criticized the UK for blocking him from using a military base on the island of Diego Garcia to carry out strikes on Iran, saying he was “surprised” while stopping short of making a similar trade threat.
“This is not the age of Churchill. I will say, the UK has been very, very uncooperative with that stupid island that they have,” Trump said.
Sanchez has condemned US and Israeli operations against Iran, saying that the effort would create a more uncertain international order. His government denied the use of bases in Rota and Morón for the strikes.
Trump earlier in the meeting had expressed optimism that “some very big trade deals” he planned to discuss with Merz would “work out.”
