U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered an immediate halt to U.S. trade with Spain, sharply criticizing the NATO ally over what he described as insufficient defense spending.

Speaking alongside Mark Rutte at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, Trump said:

“Spain is a wasted cause. We don’t want to do any trade business with Spain anymore.”

He went on to describe Spain as “a terrible partner in NATO,” claiming the country “doesn’t participate” and “doesn’t pay,” before adding:

“Cut off all trade with Spain, please, including visits. Watch them come running back.”

Trump also accused Spain of treating NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte poorly, suggesting that the country relies on the alliance’s collective protection without contributing enough.

In response, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez downplayed the remarks, with his office describing them as “business as usual” and stating that Spain does not intend to alter what it called its “excellent” trade relationship with the United States. Spanish officials also noted that trade policy with the U.S. is negotiated by the European Union as a bloc, not by individual member states.

While Trump announced the directive, experts note that implementing a full trade embargo would face significant legal and practical hurdles. Any broad restriction would likely require the administration to invoke emergency powers, and trade between the U.S. and Spain is governed in part by broader U.S.–EU trade arrangements.