Overview

• At the White House after meeting Finland’s president, Donald Trump called Spain a "laggard" for refusing to back a combined 5% of GDP defense-related target.
• Trump said European leaders should press Madrid to contribute more and suggested Spain could be expelled from the alliance.
• He also threatened additional tariffs on Spanish goods if the government does not change its defense-spending stance.
• In June, NATO members endorsed a new goal of 3.5% of GDP for core military outlays plus 1.5% for security infrastructure over ten years under U.S. pressure.
• Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez rejects the 5% goal as unreasonable and plans to hold Spain near 2.1% of GDP, while Madrid stresses it is a full member meeting capability commitments and urges Washington to de-escalate.