The Spanish government has firmly dismissed White House claims that Madrid agreed to cooperate with the United States military, as tensions escalate over Spain’s refusal to support operations against Iran.
Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Wednesday labelled assertions from Washington as “categorically false” following remarks by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
“The spokeswoman may speak for the White House, but I am the foreign minister of Spain,” Albares stated, according to reports in the newspaper El Confidencial.
The Prime Minister’s office, Moncloa Palace, also issued a rejection, describing the White House statement regarding military cooperation as “false.”
On the same day, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez reiterated Spain’s staunch opposition to military actions launched by the US and Israel against Iran. Sanchez called for an immediate end to the escalation, asserting that Spain would not alter its anti-war position out of fear of retaliation.
The diplomatic rift follows comments made by US President Donald Trump during a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House on 3 March. Trump criticised Spain for refusing to increase its defence spending to the NATO target of five per cent of GDP and for denying the US access to Spanish bases for military strikes against Iran.
Describing Madrid’s stance as “unfriendly,” the US president threatened to sever all trade ties with the country.
