U.S. President Donald Trump proposed that the NATO alliance should evaluate expelling Spain from its membership due to its failure to meet military spending obligations.
During a White House discussion with Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Thursday evening, October 9, Trump rekindled a persistent dispute with Madrid.
At a June summit in The Hague, the 32-nation security alliance agreed to a significant U.S.-backed objective to substantially boost their military expenditures to 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035.
However, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was the sole leader who declined to endorse the 5% target, deeming it “incompatible with our welfare state and our world vision.” Spain has instead pledged to allocate 2.1% of its GDP to defense, asserting this is adequate to fulfill its capacity objectives within the alliance.
In his conversation with President Stubb, Trump singled out Spain as the “one laggard” among NATO members regarding the new spending target.
“You have to call them and find why are they a laggard,” Trump said, adding, “Maybe you should throw ’em out of NATO frankly.”
On Friday, Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles responded by reaffirming Spain’s dedication to the alliance, emphasizing that the nation is a full member of NATO and honors its commitments. She noted that the U.S. Armed Forces are “well aware of Spain’s commitment.”
Spain became a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1982. The alliance’s defense priorities have faced heightened scrutiny since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
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