Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles claimed her country is meeting the “capability targets” set by NATO — despite President Donald Trump’s repeated warnings the Socialist government in Madrid keeps failing to uphold the bloc’s spending commitments.
Spain, led by the administration of socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, is one of the worst-contributing members of NATO.
The European nation has repeatedly refused to fulfill NATO’s five percent GDP in defense spending goal, prompting fierce criticism from President Trump over the past year.
In June, speaking at the White House alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump described Spain as a “horror show” over its resistance to uphold NATO’s defense spending commitments.
“We’re disappointed with most of them. Spain is a horror show. Spain is terrible, even from your standpoint,” Trump said at the time. “I mean, they don’t want to pay anything. They think they’re in for a free ride. Spain is not a good group, not a good group at all.”
Defense Minster Robles is expected to participate in the upcoming 2026 NATO Summit, a two-day event hosted in Ankara, Turkey that will run from July 7-8. Robles spoke with the Spanish newspaper El País on Sunday and claimed that, contrary to what President Trump has repeatedly denounced, “NATO commanders know that Spain is complying” with the bloc’s goals.
“All the countries of the Atlantic Alliance know that this is not true, that Spain is a reliable, responsible, and serious ally,” Robles reportedly affirmed during the interview when asked about Trump’s “sorrow show” comments.
According to Robles, Spain has “nearly 3,000” men and women serving in NATO, and is the “largest contributor” to the bloc’s Rapid Response Force — while also being “the second-largest to the Baltic Air Policing mission, and the fourth-largest to naval deployments.”
“They know that if Spain is asked to participate in any mission, we are always ready. We have made every effort to increase our defense spending and are meeting our targets,” she continued, and added, “I say this with respect for everyone and without seeking to stir up controversy, because this is not about statements, but about facts.”
Instead of raising its defense spending to meet the five percent goal, Spain has kept said spending at 2.1 percent of its GDP. The Spanish socialist government insists that the amount — less than half of the goal — is allegedly enough for the country to comply with NATO’s commitments. Secretary General Rutte has disagreed on the notion, and told reporters in June, “I think time will tell.”
Robles affirmed to El País that, according to a “rigorous study” conducted by the Spanish government, the current 2.1 percent defense spending is “enough” to be in compliance with the NATO commitments. According to Robles, Trump and Rutte’s considerations are “abstract” and the 2.1 percent is sufficient.
“When President Trump speaks, he’s not just talking about Spain. What we’re seeing is anger directed at Europe,” Robles said when asked if she fears Trump will go against Spain at the Ankara Summit.
“We can go [to Ankara] with our heads held high. NATO’s military leadership knows that Spain fulfills its obligations and is aware of our deployments, in terms of personnel, resources, and capabilities,” she continued.
The Spanish Defense Minister stressed to El País that she believes Europe must be prepared to “replace the United States” in its own self-defense — she noted, however, that such a goal is “not easy,” as she finds it evident that Europe will have to reinforce its defense industry.
“I regret that Europe, especially the defense industry, often fails to rise to the occasion,” Robles said, pointing to the blunder of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) — a recently-scrapped 100 billion euros project between Germany and France that failed to achieve its goal to develop a next-generation fighter jet.
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