President Donald Trump issued a sharp warning to Spain on Wednesday, threatening to impose harsher trade terms after the NATO member refused to adopt the alliance’s new defense spending goal of 5% of gross domestic product by 2035.
President Trump rips into Spain for refusing to increase NATO spending.
“I think Spain’s terrible what they’ve done, they are the only Country that won’t pay 5%” pic.twitter.com/WD5JGnc2WU
— Media Research Center (@theMRC) June 25, 2025
Speaking at a NATO summit in The Hague, Trump criticized Spain for being the only country to reject the updated target, which was unanimously supported by all other alliance members.
“You’re the only country that is not paying. I don’t know what the problem is,” Trump said when asked about Spain’s stance.
“We’re negotiating with Spain on a trade deal. We’re going to make them pay twice as much. And I’m actually serious about that.”
NATO’s updated spending commitment represents a significant increase from the current 2% GDP guideline and reflects an accelerated push for military readiness amid heightened global threats. The new benchmark—3.5% for direct defense and 1.5% for defense-related infrastructure—is set to be phased in over the next decade.
Spain’s rejection was framed as a matter of budgetary constraint.
“We fully respect the legitimate desire of other countries to increase their defense investment, but we are not going to do it,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said before the summit, citing the burden it would place on the country’s welfare system.
Trump dismissed the explanation.
“They want a little bit of a free ride, but they’ll have to pay it back to us on trade, because I’m not going to let that happen. It’s unfair,” he said.
Though EU members like Spain negotiate trade agreements collectively through the European Commission, Trump indicated a willingness to bypass those procedures.
“I’m going to negotiate directly with Spain. I’m going to do it myself,” he said. “They’re going to pay, they’ll pay more money this way.”
The threat follows an approaching July 9 deadline set by the Trump administration for the European Union to reach a new trade agreement. Without a deal, tariffs on EU imports to the U.S. are set to rise to 50%.
NATO leaders expressed frustration with Spain’s defiance.
“We believe that any deviation from this principle by any member country is a bad example,” said Polish Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, whose country currently leads the alliance in defense spending as a share of GDP.
An unnamed NATO official told POLITICO, “It’s incredibly unfair to the alliance.”
Trump, who has long criticized NATO members for under-investing in collective defense, said his view of the alliance has shifted due to the 5% agreement.
“I used to say NATO was a rip-off,” Trump told reporters. “Now, I see something different. This is a strong alliance again.”
Historically, the United States has contributed over two-thirds of NATO’s total defense spending. The 5% threshold, if achieved, would mark a major redistribution of military funding responsibilities and a significant strategic shift for the alliance.
