“I’m very unhappy with Spain. They’re the only country that hasn’t increased their defense budget to 5% of GDP. Every other NATO member has raised theirs,” Trump told reporters at the White House on October 14.
The U.S. president argued that Spain is taking advantage of its favorable geographic position in Europe, which provides natural protection regardless of its NATO contributions. When asked about the possibility of expelling Spain from NATO, Trump did not give a direct answer but emphasized potential economic consequences.
“I think it’s very disrespectful to NATO. In fact, I’ve considered trade sanctions against Spain through tariffs for what they’ve done. I may take action. They deserve to be punished,” Trump said, describing Spain’s decision as “very bad and unfair” to NATO. “They’re benefiting a lot from us.”
Spanish officials have not yet responded to the remarks. Under Trump’s pressure, 32 NATO member states agreed in June to significantly increase defense spending over the next decade. The new framework allocates 3.5% of GDP to core defense and 1.5% to broader areas such as infrastructure and cybersecurity—replacing the long-standing 2% GDP benchmark adopted in 2014.
Spain remains one of NATO’s lowest defense spenders, and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has repeatedly stated that his country does not need to reach the 5% target.
Last week, Trump said that Spain should be stripped of its NATO membership.
Following the U.S. president’s threat, Spanish government sources reaffirmed the country’s commitment to NATO, emphasizing that Spain continues to meet its strategic and capability goals in line with the alliance. “Our country meets capability targets similar to those of the United States,” one official said.