Madrid must spend more on defense to meet its NATO obligations, United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told his Spanish counterpart in pointed comments Tuesday.
Bessent met with Spanish Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo in Washington and “highlighted the need for greater defense spending by Spain in the context of NATO,” according to a Treasury Department statement.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly hammered European capitals for underspending on defense and overreliance on the American military for their own security. He has threatened not to come to laggards’ aid if they are attacked — unless they step up their contributions.
Spain is one of the worst offenders in the transatlantic military alliance, spending just 1.32 percent of its GDP on defense, well below NATO’s current target of 2 percent. Madrid plans to reach that goal before 2029.
Bessent also hit out at Spain’s “digital services tax,” which forces Big Tech firms to pay more taxes in the country and is seen by the White House as unfairly targeting American tech giants, plus “other non-tariff barriers” levied on the U.S.
Trump slapped a 20 percent tariff on goods from the European Union earlier this month, which he claimed was retaliation for the U.S. being treated unfairly on trade, before pausing that penalty for 90 days.
Cuerpo said after the Bessent meeting that he was confident the U.S. is open to negotiating with the EU on trade and tariffs, and wants to seal a deal before Trump’s moratorium expires in July.
“Bessent has expressed his desire to reach an agreement with major trading partners, such as the European Union,” Cuerpo told the Spanish press after the meeting. “We are convinced that [European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš] Šefčovič will be able to reach a balanced, fair, and mutually beneficial agreement.”
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