Trump Orders Halt to All U.S. Trade With Spain
President Donald Trump said Wednesday he directed the Treasury to end all U.S. trade with Spain after Madrid declined NATO's 5% defense spending target, speaking at the alliance summit in Ankara.
The Morning Brief Desk · July 8, 2026 · Based on reporting by AP News · Updated July 13, 2026
President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he has instructed the U.S. government to sever its entire trading relationship with Spain, a NATO member. The announcement came on the closing day of the alliance's summit in Ankara, Turkey.
Trump said the order went to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and was a response to the Spanish government's refusal to commit to spending 5% of its economy on defense, the benchmark the alliance has set. He dismissed the country as a "wasted cause," according to Fox News.
The trade announcement was one of several moves by Trump that pulled the summit away from its planned agenda. He repeated his demand that the United States take control of Greenland, prompting Denmark to say it would defend the territory, CNBC reported. He also raised the possibility of pulling American troops out of Europe. And during the summit itself, Trump ordered new military strikes on Iran, according to AP. Alliance members had hoped to keep the gathering focused on defense budgets and support for Ukraine.
The context
Defense spending has been the central dispute heading into the Ankara summit. NATO members were working toward a united position on a target of 5% of national output for defense, and allies wanted the meeting to concentrate on that goal along with the war in Ukraine. Spain rejected the 5% figure, and Trump singled out Madrid for criticism over that decision, CNBC reported. The Greenland dispute is not new either: Trump has previously pressed for U.S. control of the territory, which Denmark administers, and his comments in Ankara renewed that push. The material available does not specify the scale of current U.S.-Spain trade, what legal mechanism would be used to halt it, or when the cutoff would take effect.
Why it matters
A U.S. president ordering a complete halt to trade with a NATO ally has no precedent, and the decision raises questions for American businesses, markets and the alliance itself. Taken together with Trump's Greenland demands and his suggestion that U.S. troops could leave Europe, the moves put pressure on NATO's cohesion at a moment when members were trying to present a common front on defense spending and Ukraine. Spain now faces the possibility of losing access to the U.S. market over a defense budget dispute.
What’s next
Key details remain unannounced, including how and when the Treasury would implement a trade cutoff and whether Spain will respond by reconsidering the spending target. Watch for reaction from Madrid and other NATO governments, any formal Treasury action carrying out the order, developments in the standoff over Greenland after Denmark's pledge to defend it, and fallout from the new strikes on Iran.
Sources
AP News — Trump sidetracks NATO with new Iran strikes while in Turkey
Trump threw a major twist into the NATO summit in Ankara, launching strikes on Iran while allies tried to focus on defense spending and Ukraine.
CNBC — Trump pours cold water on NATO allies' united front
Trump criticized NATO allies over defense spending, attacked Spain for rejecting the 5% target, and renewed his push for US control of Greenland as Denmark vowed to defend it.
Fox News Politics — Trump demands end to trade with key US ally, calls it a 'wasted cause'
Trump called Spain a 'wasted cause' at the NATO summit and said he ordered Treasury Secretary Bessent to cut off all trade after Madrid rejected the 5% defense spending target.
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