President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to cut off all trade with Spain, due to Madrid’s refusal to increase military spending and its airspace restrictions on the US’s attacks on Iran.
with their defense spending — by either failing to lay out clear plans to meet the figure or including non-military expenses — to European allies.backs Trump’s insistence that all members are on track to raise their defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2030.
However, Spain appears far from that goal on paper. Socialist President Pedro Sanchez has refused to spend more than 2.1% of the country’s GDP on defense. As for Trump’s latest threat to cut off trade, Sánchez’s office said that Madrid “maintains an excellent social, cultural, and economic relationship with the US, and we have no intention of seeing that change.
”Ending all trade with the country will limit Americans’ access to common household goods, such as olive oil, and interfere with existing agreements with the European Union. On Wednesday, Trump said “Spain is a wasted cause,” and that the US doesn’t “want to do any trade business with Spain anymore. ” The president said he ordered Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to cut off all trade for the second time this year.
“Spain is a terrible partner in NATO. They don’t participate, they don’t pay. I don’t want to have anything to do with Spain. Cut off all trade with Spain, please, including visits… Watch them come running back,” Trump said.
“We don’t have to trade with them. I don’t want to do any more trade with them, alright? Immediately,” he added. Trump said that Spain would put down their “hostile” front when they “call up and they , ‘Please, please.
We want to trade with you, sir. We want to trade with you, sir. ” The president added that Spain makes so much money from the US, and everyone will see the country making much less without American business. The US and Spain trade roughly $47 billion annually in goods.
While the US exports energy products, industrial machinery, aerospace equipment, and pharmaceuticals to Spain, the US imports more common goods from Spain. Common Spanish goods imported include Spanish pharmaceuticals, oils, specialty food products, wine, perfumes, cosmetics, and various machinery and electronic equipment.and imports decreased by $179 million. Only 4.9% of Spanish exports go to the US, and 1.2% of total US exports go to Spain.
Spain is the world’s leading olive oil producer and exporter — accounting for nearly half of all global supply. Annual US imports of Spanish virgin olive oil represent close to 90 million kilograms of product, exceeding $860 million worth of product, according to theIf the US seeks to officially cut off trade with Spain, a significant share of imports would disappear.
Many olive oils sold in US grocery stores are either under Spanish brands or contain Spanish oil.reported that the US produces less than 2% of the olive oil the country consumes, forcing the US to import from other countries such as Italy, Greece, Portugal, Tunisia or Turkey. , the US is the world’s largest olive oil importer. Olive oil production is limited in the short term, meaning that an increased demand from the US would likely push prices higher.
This could also cause US retailers to lose access to certain products, and cause restaurants and food manufacturers to rethink their prices. During the NATO press conference on Wednesday, Trump was asked about the trade agreement with the European Union and whether he would seek to cut trade with Spain.
“We’ll see what happens with the E.U. They have treated us very badly for years and they took advantage,” he responded. —Spain’s foreign trade is governed by the bloc’s deals. Trade negotiations were conducted as a single bloc, rather than individual member states.
Under the agreement, the US established a 15% tariff ceiling for most European goods, and granted preferential market access for certain US farm produce, seafood and extended tariff-free status for US lobster. , the president has the power to restrict or block foreign countries’ economic deals.
This act is only possible if Trump can prove that such a country presents an “unusual or extraordinary threat” to US national security, foreign policy or the economy — and declare the situation a national emergency. , the president can impose tariffs or set quotas on specific goods if the Commerce Department sees them to pose a threat to national security.on Spain’s black olives stating that “producers received unfair subsidies.
” The policy was quickly challenged after and overturned by the World Trade Organization. However, Spain’s share of the US black olive market plummeted from 49% in 2017 to 19% in 2024. In 2025, Trump said that he “may” punish Spain for refusing to reach the 5% threshold in military spending. Trump escalated in March byno investigations have been disclosed on the Federal Register.
The office of Sánchez responded to Trump’s comments, calling them “as a matter of routine” and added that Madrid “maintains an excellent social, cultural, and economic relationship with the US, and we have no intention of seeing that change. ”
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