US President Donald Trump has reignited a major dispute within NATO, suggesting the alliance should expel Spain for failing to meet military spending goals.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Speaking in the Oval Office on Thursday, October 9, 2025, Trump called Spain a “laggard” for resisting his push for allies to commit to a massive increase in defense spending.
The Spending Showdown
The controversy centers on the new, aggressive spending target Trump is promoting:
- Trump’s Demand: He is urging NATO members to dedicate 5% of their GDP to defense—a figure two-and-a-half times the traditional 2% target.
- Spain’s Resistance: Spain is the only one of NATO’s 32 members that secured an exemption from this new 5% target back in June.
- Spain’s Current Spending: According to alliance figures, Spain spent only 1.28% of its GDP on defense last year.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has defended a 2.1% commitment as “sufficient and realistic,” citing political resistance to higher military budgets from his left-wing coalition and arguing that a 5% commitment would be “unreasonable and counterproductive.”
Madrid Defends Its Loyalty
In response to Trump’s threat—”Maybe you should throw them out of NATO, frankly”—Spain swiftly defended its record.
Defense Minister Margarita Robles stated on Friday that Spain is “one of NATO’s most loyal and committed allies” and dismissed the criticism.
Madrid argues that its contributions go well beyond its budget numbers, citing:
- Active Troop Deployment: Spain remains an active participant in NATO missions, deploying troops to front-line nations like Latvia, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey.
- Support for Ukraine: It has consistently provided both military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Spain joined the alliance in 1982 and insists that its operational support and stability in the southern flank are essential to the alliance.
