Trump hails Spain’s ‘generous’ financial pledge after tense NATO standoff

US President Donald Trump praised Spain on Thursday for making a substantial financial commitment, abruptly ending a fierce NATO summit standoff that had threatened to sever bilateral trade and security ties.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump announced that Madrid had “honoured a request for lots of payment.” The announcement marked a dramatic shift in tone; earlier in the summit, Trump had dismissed Spain as a "hopeless" ally and a "wasted cause."

"I will say, I did have issues with Spain, and I still do, but Spain came back all the way today. Spain was very generous today," Trump said. Framing the resolution as a triumph for his hardline foreign policy, he added: “They honoured a request for lots of payment—and if they didn't, we wouldn't even talk to them.”

The diplomatic friction had reached its peak when Trump directed US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to prepare a trade embargo against Spain. The dispute centred on Madrid's resistance to NATO's ambitious new mandate, which pushes member states to increase defence spending to 5% of their GDP by 2035.

While Spain had successfully negotiated a special exemption to cap its military expenditure at 2.1%, it still faced relentless pressure and public criticism from the US administration, with Trump frequently labelling it a "bad partner" and a “wasted cause.”

Prior to the breakthrough, the Spanish Prime Minister's Office had attempted to defuse the situation, releasing a statement that emphasised the enduring ties between the two nations: “Our country enjoys excellent social, cultural, and economic relations with the US, and it is not our intention for that to change.”

Following Spain's concession, Trump noted that the sudden financial injection had restored a sense of "great unity" to the Western alliance, even if he still harboured lingering concerns over Madrid's broader defence posture.

The successful extraction of funds underscores a defining feature of Trump’s approach to European allies: leveraging the threat of severe economic isolation to force increased contributions to collective security.

As the volatile summit draws to a close, NATO's focus will now shift to operationalising these newly secured pledges while member states balance their domestic budgets against shared defence responsibilities.

What did Trump say at NATO?

Speaking at a summit of NATO leaders in Ankara, Trump said he had ordered his Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to cut off trade ties with Spain, calling Madrid a "terrible partner" in NATO.

"Spain is a wasted cause. We don't want to do any trade business with Spain anymore," Trump said. “By the way, I'd like to cut it off. Spain is a terrible partner in NATO. They don't participate, they don't pay. I don't want anything to do with Spain. Cut off all trade with Spain, including visits.”