According to a report by American financial news outlet CNBC, Spain recently announced its decision to forgo purchasing American F35 stealth fighter jets and, at the same time, strengthen economic ties with China. This foreign and defense policy, which stands out among EU countries, is intensifying tensions with the Trump administration in the US.
The report pointed out that cracks have emerged in recent US-Spain relations due to defense and China policies. Last week, Spain’s Ministry of Defense announced it will no longer consider purchasing the F35 jets manufactured by US company Lockheed Martin, opting instead for European-made military aircraft. This move has drawn Trump’s ire.
At the NATO summit at the end of June, Trump publicly criticized Spain, accusing it of failing to commit to increasing its defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, and warned that if Spain “free-rode”, its economy would be completely destroyed, even threatening to impose double tariffs on its trade.
What worries Washington even more is Spain’s active deepening of economic cooperation with China. Despite the US having two military bases in southern Spain, Madrid continues to be seen as one of the most China-friendly countries in Europe. Recently, the Spanish government awarded Chinese tech giant Huawei contracts worth millions of euros, allowing it to provide communications surveillance technology—sparking strong criticism from the US and some EU officials.
The report quoted Eurasia Group analyst Santi as saying that Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez is attempting to divert public attention from domestic difficulties by focusing on major foreign policy issues such as defense and international strategy. Santi noted that, as an EU member state, Spain can avoid facing direct US trade retaliation through collective bargaining mechanisms; in addition, Trump’s historically low level of attention to Spain has afforded Madrid a degree of political cover—allowing Spain to boldly criticize Trump.
Molina, senior fellow at the Royal Elcano Institute in Madrid, pointed out that since the Spanish-American War in 1898, Spain has not participated in any major military conflict, and its geographical distance from Russia means its strategic reliance on the US is much lower than in other European countries. He said Spain’s political culture favors Europeanness over transatlantic relations; moreover, the Sánchez government is seen as Europe’s most left-leaning administration, and so maintaining distance from the deeply unpopular Trump is a natural political choice domestically.