DONALD Trump praised Spain for having ‘come back all the way’ only hours after warning he could halt all trade with Madrid over its refusal to raise defence spending.
The US president said Spain had agreed to an important payment request from NATO, though he did not specify the amount or what the payment was for.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday morning, Trump said: “Spain has been very generous today.”
He added: “They honoured a request for lots of payment and, if they didn’t, we wouldn’t have even spoken to them.”
READ MORE: Trump orders US Treasury to cease all trade with Spain after calling Madrid a ‘terrible partner’
He made the remarks while returning to Washington from a key NATO summit in Ankara, Turkiye, where he had earlier lashed out at Madrid over its refusal to increase defence spending and collaborate in the war effort against Iran.
Appearing at the summit alongside NATO secretary general Mark Rutte on Wednesday, Trump had ordered US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to cut off all trade with Madrid after branding Spain a ‘terrible partner’ and a ‘lost cause.’
Reuters then reported US officials would begin working on ‘a menu of Spanish products that may be embargoed in the coming days.’
The US president, however, now appears to have walked back the threat after the NATO summit drew to a close.
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez had earlier sought to play down Trump’s threat, describing their meeting in Ankara as ‘cordial’ and saying they had discussed football and golf.
He said he had talked through Spain’s defence spending with the US president and pledged to take part in an operation in Finland to help defend the Atlantic and Arctic.
“Our relationship with the US is very positive. This is not the first time we have been the target of criticism,” Sanchez said.
He added that Spain runs a trade deficit with the US and pointed out that trade policy is handled by the European Union, not individual member states.
Trump’s outburst on Wednesday had marked the latest escalation in a series of threats dating back to October last year, when Sanchez rejected his demand that Spain increase its defence spending to 5% of GDP.
The US president had responded by threatening tariffs and suggesting Spain should be removed from the NATO alliance.
Then, in March this year, Sanchez again defied Trump by denying the use of joint US-Spanish military bases at Rota and Moron for strikes on Iran.
Trump retaliated by threatening a total trade embargo on Spain, though he took no action to follow through on his warning.
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