'No to war,' Spanish PM Sanches tells Trump

MADRID, Spain: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hit back on Wednesday at US President Donald Trump’s criticisms of Madrid’s refusal to let US planes use its bases to attack Iran.

“The position of the government of Spain can be summed up in four words: no to war,” he said in a televised address, a day after Trump threatened to sever all trade with Spain.

“We will not be complicit in something that is harmful to the world and contrary to our values and interests, simply out of fear of retaliation,” he added.

“We oppose this disaster,” Sanchez said, arguing that his stance is shared by “many other governments” and “millions of citizens across Europe, North America and the Middle East who do not want more war or uncertainty tomorrow”.

Trump called Spain a “terrible” ally on Tuesday as he met German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House.

He also pointed to Sanchez’s refusal to join NATO allies in a pledge to boost defence spending to five percent of GDP as demanded by Trump, who has frequently argued that the United States shoulders too much of the alliance’s burden.

Sanchez’s leftist government has angered Washington with a series of other policies, including his staunch opposition to Israel’s war in Gaza and the military operation to abduct and arrest President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela.

US forces use the Rota naval base and Moron air base in Spain. During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Spain, then led by conservative prime minister Jose Maria Aznar, staunchly backed the United States.