‘They’ve been very bad...’: Trump warns Spain of cutting trade ties over Iran war stance

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (Mar 11) once again threatened to cut trade with Spain over its stance on the Iran war. He accused Madrid of failing to cooperate with NATO after the Spanish government refused to allow the US military to use its jointly operated bases in the country for strikes against the Islamic Republic. This comes after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez distanced his administration from the conflict in the Middle East, saying that his government’s position could be summed up in three words: “No to war.”

Speaking to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House, Trump said, “I think they're not cooperating at all. Spain. I think they've been very bad, very bad, not good at all. We may cut off trade with Spain.” He added,

“They’ve been very bad to NATO,” Trump said, adding that Madrid gets “protected” but “they don’t want to pay their fair share, and they’ve been that way for many years.”
This comes as the Iran war expands in West Asia after the US and Israeli military launched strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei and several other top Iranian officials. The operation was named ‘Epic Fury’ by the US and ‘Lion’s Roar’ by Israel. The attacks came amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran and ongoing talks over Iran’s nuclear program. In retaliation, Iran launched attacks on Israel and US military bases in the region, including in Bahrain, Kuwait, the UAE, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Azerbaijan.

In a recent declaration, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (Mar 11) claimed victory in the war with Iran, without providing any evidence to support his remarks. “Let me say we’ve won. You know, you never like to say too early that you won. We won. We won, in the first hour it was over, but we won,” he said.

On the other hand, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Thursday (Mar 12) has set three conditions to end the raging war. In a first statement on ending war, Pezeshkian said, “The only way to end this war—ignited by the Zionist regime & US—is recognising Iran’s legitimate rights, payment of reparations, and firm int’l guarantees against future aggression.”

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, the US, Gulf nations and non-state actors like Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis, Islamic State, and others. Claims and counterclaims, disinformation and misinformation are being made online and offline. Given this context, WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.