Spain in the Storm: Trump, the Embargo, and NATO

The Spark: Rota and Morón Bases

The conflict erupted in early March 2026, when Pedro Sánchez's government refused to allow the joint military bases of Rota (Cádiz) and Morón de la Frontera (Seville) to be used by U.S. forces as part of the military offensive against Iran, known as Operation Epic Fury. Although both facilities are shared with Washington, they remain under Spanish sovereignty, and Madrid invoked that principle to block their offensive use.

Donald Trump's response was swift. In statements reported by Bloomberg, the U.S. president said he had asked to "cut off trade relations" with Spain, threatening a total embargo. "They are not cooperating at all," Trump added, calling the country "very bad" for NATO.

Merz Aligns with Washington

The pressure intensified when German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, during his visit to the White House, sided with Trump and publicly criticized Spain for not having reached the defense spending targets agreed upon in the Atlantic Alliance. According to The Objective, Merz stated that Berlin was trying to "convince" Madrid to reach between 3% and 3.5% of GDP in military investment, the only NATO partner that had not committed to that threshold.

However, according to diplomatic sources cited by European media, Merz privately warned that the European Union could not commercially discriminate against a member state, which limits the real scope of Trump's threat within the community space.

Spanish defense spending is around 2% of GDP in 2026, well below the new demands of the Alliance. Sánchez had previously negotiated that Spain could meet military capability objectives without reaching the 5% that Washington has demanded.

Sánchez Stands Firm: "No to War"

The Spanish president responded with a televised address in which he defended the Spanish position to the public. "We will not be accomplices to something that is bad for the world and that also goes against our values and interests, simply for fear of retaliation," Sánchez said, as reported by Euronews. The head of the Executive Branch called the offensive against Iran an "unjustifiable" and "dangerous" intervention, summarizing his position in four words: "No to war".

Defense Minister Margarita Robles confirmed that the Pentagon had withdrawn a dozen KC-135 tanker aircraft stationed at Spanish bases, and Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares stressed that any use of these facilities must comply with the United Nations Charter.

An Unprecedented Diplomatic Position

The episode places Spain in an unprecedented situation within the Atlantic Alliance: simultaneously in the crosshairs of the White House and the chancellor of the European Union's most powerful partner, while defending an interpretation of international law that has support in progressive European sectors but distances it from the Paris-London-Berlin axis.

According to the European Council on Foreign Relations, the Spanish case could become a precedent regarding the limits of U.S. pressure on European allies in matters of military sovereignty. La Moncloa, for the moment, maintains its position: Spain will not participate in actions that it considers destabilizing, and any commercial consequences must respect the bilateral agreements between the EU and the United States.