President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States will halt all trade with Spain, lashing out after Barcelona barred Washington from using Spanish bases for strikes on Iran, a claim Madrid insists is based on a false premise.
"We're going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don't want anything to do with Spain," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office as he hosted German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. "Spain has been terrible," he said.
It remains unclear what power Trump would have to "end" trade with Spain, after the Supreme Court struck down his use of emergency powers to impose arbitrary tariffs.
Musing on the legalities, the 79-year-old property tycoon turned president said, "I could tomorrow stop or today, even better – stop everything having to do with Spain, all business."
"I have the right to... do anything I want with it," he said.
The Spanish government quickly responded that it had a "mutually beneficial" trading relationship with the United States and other countries.
"If the US administration wishes to review this relationship, it must do so while respecting the autonomy of private companies, international law and bilateral agreements between the European Union and the US," it said.
"Our country has the necessary resources to contain possible impacts, help sectors that may be affected, and diversify supply chains."
Sanchez has called for dialogue to end the war on Iran, saying that "One can oppose a hateful regime and at the same time oppose an unjustified and dangerous military intervention."
Sanchez is also an outspoken critic of Israel, accusing it of carrying out genocide in Gaza over the course of two years, killing over 76,000 Palestinians.
The Spanish government said Monday that the U.S. has neither used nor will it use Spanish military bases to conduct attacks against Iran, insisting Madrid maintains full control over its sovereign facilities.
Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday called for an immediate end to the escalating "spiral of violence" across the Middle East, condemning "all illegal and indiscriminate" attacks.
"This spiral of violence must be stopped immediately, and a return to diplomacy and dialogue is necessary," Sanchez said.
He condemned "all illegal and indiscriminate attacks" against Gulf Cooperation Council members and other countries in the region following recent military actions.
"We strongly condemn all illegal and indiscriminate attacks against the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and other countries in the region," he said, while also decrying Hezbollah's missile launch and Israel's attack on Lebanon.
Underscoring the broad impacts of cross-border hostilities, he said: "Violence only begets more violence. Bombs hit military targets, but also streets, airports, schools, and the homes of innocent civilians."
Previously, Spain rejected the "unilateral military action" launched by the U.S. and Israel against Iran on Saturday, warning that the world cannot afford another "prolonged and devastating war" in the Middle East.
"We reject the unilateral military action by the United States and Israel, which represents an escalation and contributes to a more uncertain and hostile international order. We likewise reject the actions of the Iranian regime and the Revolutionary Guard," he wrote on X.
The U.S. and Israel attacked Tehran early Saturday, in the middle of negotiations about Iran's nuclear program that had been continuing under Oman's mediation. A new round of talks in Geneva ended Thursday.
