On Tuesday, Trump had rounded on Madrid for refusing the US permission to use jointly operated bases in southern Spain to continue its attacks in Iran. “Spain has been terrible,” Trump said during a meeting with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, adding that he had told the Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, to “cut off all dealings” with the European country. “Everybody was enthusiastic about it – Germany, everybody – and Spain didn’t do it,” Trump said. “There is no way to treat Spain particularly badly.”The European Commission has also robustly defended Spain against Trump’s threat of commercial retaliation. “Any threat against member state is by definition a threat against the EU,” Stéphane Séjourné, the EU internal market commissioner, said on Wednesday.

Source: The Guardian March 04, 2026 11:45 UTC