Paul Kirby,Europe digital editorand
Guy Hedgecoe,in Madrid
La Moncloa
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has delivered a strong rebuttal to US President Donald Trump’s threat to end trade with Spain by declaring his opposition to war and what he called the “breakdown of international law”.
In a 10-minute televised address Sánchez reflected on the wars in Ukraine and Gaza as well as the Iraq War more than 20 years ago and said “the government’s position can be summed up in four words: No to war”.
Trump threatened to impose a full trade embargo on Spain in response to Madrid’s refusal to allow the US to use the jointly run bases at Morón and Rotafor for strikes on Iran.
“Spain has been terrible,” Trump said during a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday.
“We’re going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don’t want anything to do with Spain,” he added.
Merz said later he had told Trump very clearly that he could not conclude a separate agreement with Germany or all of Europe but not with Spain.
Trump has also accused Spain of being a “terrible partner” in Nato for failing to increase its defence budget in line with a target of 5% of economic output (GDP).
In his televised address from the prime minister’s residence at La Moncloa, Sánchez said the government was studying economic measures to counter the impact of the conflict on Spaniards.
He asserted that one “illegality” could not be met with another, speaking of the “disaster” of the war in the Middle East, two days after he had appealed for both sides to pull back from conflict and respect international law.
Spain’s Socialist prime minister explained that the government’s position was comparable to its stance on Ukraine and Gaza. Sánchez has been a vociferous critic of Israel’s military response to the Hamas attacks in 2023.
Looking back to the invasion of Iraq in 2003, which he said had failed to achieve its goals and had made life worse for ordinary people, he warned that the attacks on Iran could have similar economic impact for millions.
“It’s unacceptable that some presidents use the fog of war to cover up their failures,” said Sánchez.
He added: “The question is not if we are on the side of the ayatollahs – nobody is. The question is whether we are in favour of peace and international legality.”
