U.S. President Donald Trump has raised concerns regarding Spain’s defense spending, suggesting that NATO should contemplate expelling the country from the alliance. The remarks were made during a bilateral meeting with Finland’s President Alexander Stubb.
“We had one laggard — Spain. You have to call them and find why are they a laggard,” Trump stated.
During the meeting, Trump expressed his dissatisfaction with Spain, emphasizing that despite the country’s economic progress, it has not met the defense spending expectations set forth by NATO. He remarked, “They are doing well too, because of a lot of things we’ve done. They’re doing fine. They have no excuse to do this, but that’s alright. Maybe you should throw them out of NATO, frankly.”
NATO’s defense spending benchmarks
At a NATO summit held in June, member countries agreed to adhere to Trump’s call for a defense spending allocation of 5 percent of their GDP. This benchmark includes 3.5 percent for core military expenditures and an additional 1.5 percent for broader security-related investments. Notably, Spain was the only NATO member that declined to commit to this goal.
Trump commended Finland for increasing its military budget, a move largely seen as a response to Russia’s aggressive actions in Ukraine. He noted, “You were great about it. Spain has not been.” He added that it would be prudent for NATO members to address Spain’s defense spending shortcomings directly.
Spain’s current defense spending and commitments
According to NATO’s figures, Spain ranks as the lowest spender within the alliance, allocating less than 1.2 percent of its GDP to defense in 2023. In contrast, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has asserted that Spain only needs to invest 2.1 percent of its GDP to fulfill its defense obligations.
Reflecting on his defense spending proposals, Trump remarked, “I requested they [NATO allies] pay 5 percent and not 2 percent, and most people thought that was not going to happen, and it happened virtually unanimously.” These comments highlight the ongoing debate within NATO regarding equitable defense spending among member states.