US President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to halt trade with Spain after Madrid declined to allow American aircraft to use its military bases for strikes against Iran. He also criticised the UK for what he described as insufficient cooperation.
Spain’s left-leaning administration under Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez — one of the most outspoken European leaders in opposition to Trump — has maintained that facilities historically used by US forces may only be deployed for actions consistent with the United Nations Charter. ALSO READ: US military aircraft leave Spain after government prohibits use of bases for Iran attacks.
‘Spain has been terrible,’ Trump told reporters during a White House meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
He also again singled out Sánchez for refusing to back a NATO commitment to raise defence spending to 5% of GDP, a target championed by Trump, who argues that Washington shoulders a disproportionate share of the alliance’s costs. ALSO READ: Sánchez hits back at Trump’s latest criticism of Spain being ‘not a team player’.
‘So we’re going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don’t want anything to do with Spain,’ Trump said, adding that he had instructed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to ‘cut off all dealings with Spain’. ALSO READ: Trump tells Sánchez he’s doing a ‘fantastic job’ – days after suggesting Spain should be thrown out of NATO.
It is unclear what authority Trump would have to ‘end’ trade with Spain, particularly after the US Supreme Court struck down his use of emergency powers to impose sweeping tariffs. ALSO READ: Spanish government hits back after renewed tariff threats from Donald Trump over defence spending.
Reflecting on the issue, the 79-year-old president said, ‘I could tomorrow stop — or today, even better — stop everything having to do with Spain, all business.’
‘I have the right to … do anything I want with it,’ he added.
Madrid responded swiftly, stressing that trade ties with the United States — as well as with other partners — are ‘mutually beneficial’.
‘If the US administration wishes to review this relationship, it must do so while respecting the autonomy of private companies, international law and bilateral agreements between the European Union and the US,’ the government said.
‘Our country has the necessary resources to contain possible impacts, help sectors that may be affected, and diversify supply chains.’
Sánchez has repeatedly called for dialogue to end the conflict with Iran, arguing that, ‘One can oppose a hateful regime and at the same time oppose an unjustified and dangerous military intervention.’ ALSO READ: Sánchez: Spain will not join Trump’s Board of Peace, preferring UN-led multilateralism.
He has also been a vocal critic of Israel, accusing it of committing genocide in its large-scale military campaign in Gaza — a charge Israel strongly denies. ALSO READ: Spanish PM: Gaza truce must not mean impunity for ‘genocide’.
US forces currently operate from Spain’s Rota naval base and the Morón air base in Andalusia. During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Spain — then governed by right-wing PP prime minister José María Aznar — firmly supported Washington. ALSO READ: Spain rejects ‘unilateral military action by US & Israel’, but also ‘actions of Iranian regime’.
‘Not happy’ with UK
Trump also expressed frustration with the UK, which chose not to take part in the assault on Iran despite its long-standing military partnership with the United States in conflicts including the two World Wars, Iraq and Afghanistan.
‘I’m not happy with the UK,’ Trump said, adding of Prime Minister Keir Starmer: ‘This is not Winston Churchill that we’re dealing with.’
Starmer said US fighter jets could make use of two British facilities — one in Gloucestershire in western England and the joint UK-US base at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean — but only for a ‘specific and limited defensive purpose’.
However, he clarified that Washington had not been granted permission to operate from UK bases in Cyprus, one of which was hit by an Iranian-made drone.
‘It’s taken three, four days for us to work out where we can land,’ Trump said, apparently referring to Diego Garcia. ‘There would have been much more convenient landing there, as opposed to flying many extra hours.’
Trump has also criticised Starmer over his decision to return the Chagos Islands — which include Diego Garcia and whose inhabitants were expelled decades ago — to Mauritius, while leasing back the strategic base.
‘I will say the UK has been very, very uncooperative with that stupid island that they have,’ Trump said.
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🔴 Trump califica a España de “aliado terrible” y anuncia que van a “cortar” todo el trato comercial con el país: “Están siendo muy poco amigables. España no tiene nada que nosotros queramos. Es un pueblo fantástico, pero con unos dirigentes terribles”.
— RTVE Noticias (@rtvenoticias) March 3, 2026
https://t.co/wIMPtOs0Wj pic.twitter.com/lNCjSOBGaU
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