Posted on 06/25/2025 10:23:39 AM PDT by DFG
“Terrible” socialist Spain was the sole NATO member to refuse a major increase in defence spending this week, leaving President Donald Trump threatening tariffs in return.
Spain will end up paying more, all told, for the dogged refusal of its government to accept a greater share of the common defence of the Euro-Atlantic area because it will simply pay higher tariffs on trade instead, President Trump said on Wednesday.
Apparently enjoying playing the room and getting laughs, President Trump showed a glint of steel as he brushed off Spanish reporters trying to ask questions at his end-of-summit press conference in the Hague, taking those moments to instead warn the Spanish government on their choice of course on NATO spending.
He said: “I think Spain are terrible, what they’ve done. They are the only country who won’t pay… they want to stay at two per cent. I think it’s terrible, and you know they’re doing very well, the economy is going very well. And that economy could be blown right out of the water with something bad happening… you’re the only country that’s not paying, I don’t know what the problem is.”
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
Good. European govts are liars and grifters.
They can’t tariff Spain without tariffing the entire EU. They’re part of the same trade bloc.
Spain is being reconquered anyway 2.5 million Muslims (a large number given that their population size).
Double secret special tariffs!
Are you sure about that? My understanding is that Trump wanted individual agreements agreements between countries and not "blocks".
I just don't know, but I don't see the EU stepping up to defend Spain since all of them are supporting full NATO funding. They will not be happy picking up Spain's bar tab.
Trump’s right
Spain was the sole NATO member to refuse a major increase in defence spending.
Pay one way or the other we are not your daddy.
Socialist deadbeats.
Normally, if someone doesn’t pay their dues, they are kicked out of the organization.
Next question: Does NATO membership mean the US will have to save European countries from their Muslim immigrants?
If we think NATO is freeloading, the proper remedy is our withdrawal, not the taxing of American consumers to force European nations to spends more on their militaries.
It doesn’t matter what Trump thinks they are all part of the same single market and customs union. You cannot tarrif one member state without tarrifing all of them and you are not going to persuade them to break ranks with Spain and thus totally unravel their ability to negotiate trade agreements with the US at peer level vs individual countries with inferior leverage.
China has already surpassed the US in terms of purchasing power parity and industrial capacity, they are building ships at a faster rate than the US and are already larger than the US in terms of total surface combatants. They have a much larger population and are churning out more stem graduates than the US. It is only a matter of time before China surpasses the US as sn economic and military power and alienating America’s allies, which is the one advantage the US still has over China, is a totally stupid and self defeating move because an American led alliance is going to delay China’s rise to supremacy.
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