EU scrambles to defend Spain from Trump’s embargo menace

BRUSSELS — President Donald Trump’s threat to impose a trade embargo on Spain has delivered yet another jolt to the European Union, forcing European leaders to rally around Madrid.

Trump launched his broadside on Tuesday after Madrid declined to allow U.S. warplanes to use its air bases to attack Iran. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stood firm on Wednesday, describing the five-day-old war launched by the U.S. and Israel on Iran as illegal.

French President Emmanuel Macron rushed to Sánchez’s side, expressing solidarity against “recent threats of economic coercion” made against Spain. European Council President António Costa doubled down and stressed that “the EU will always ensure that the interests of its Member States are fully protected.”

Trump’s latest showdown with an EU country comes weeks after he vowed to annex Greenland — a self-governing Danish territory. That bust-up tested the transatlantic relationship to the limit, and led European lawmakers to hit the brakes on implementing the bilateral trade deal struck last summer at Trump’s golf resort in Scotland.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz — who was present in the Oval Office as Trump launched his tirade — said: “There is no way that Spain will be treated particularly badly” on trade as a member of the EU, and insisted that he wanted to avoid correcting Trump in public. 

He was more forthright in comments later to the German press.

“Here in Washington, they know that we on the European side have reached a limit in terms of what we are willing to accept,” Merz said. “I have gained the impression that the president and his staff see it that way too.”

Steady hand

During the Greenland standoff, the EU avoided rushing into a forceful response, patting itself on the back for remaining united as it succeeded in defusing the crisis. 

Now, the bloc is dealing with a Trump riled up by a U.S. Supreme Court decision last month that overturned his core tariff agenda. Importantly, even though the court struck down his broad “reciprocal” tariffs, his aides argue that it reaffirmed his right to impose an economic embargo against another country.

Instead of threatening an Arctic island with a population of less than 60,000, Trump is this time venting his ire at a nation of 50 million with a $1.7 trillion economy. 

The EU’s fourth-largest economy is a big buyer of U.S. liquefied natural gas, which covered an estimated 30 percent of its gas needs last year. On the export ledger, Spain sells olives, wines and cosmetics to the U.S.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said: “There is no way that Spain will be treated particularly badly” on trade as a member of the EU, and insisted that he wanted to avoid correcting Trump in public. | Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance via Getty Images

Yet the U.S. accounts for only 4 percent of Spain’s total global exports, according to the Ministry of Economy. It also ran a bilateral trade deficit of €16 billion in 2025, meaning that, in principle, that the U.S. would stand to lose more if commercial relations were completely blocked.

First cracks 

Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said he had conveyed his “surprise” to his German counterpart Johann Wadephul that Merz didn’t show solidarity in the face of Trump’s attacks.

“A few weeks ago Trump aimed his threats against Denmark and Germany and others over Greenland. Today, it is against Spain. Tomorrow it could be Germany again or any other EU member. It’s more important now than ever to remain united,” said a national official, who was granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter. 

The European Commission also took the threat seriously, vowing on Wednesday to “ensure that the interests of the European Union are fully protected.” 

“We stand in full solidarity with all Member States and all its citizens and, through our common trade policy, stand ready to act if necessary to safeguard EU interests,” said Olof Gill, deputy chief spokesperson of the European Commission. 

All for one

It’s not immediately clear how Trump could, even if he wanted to, impose a watertight embargo on Spain — since the EU functions as a barrier-free common market of 27 nations it would in practice be quite easy to circumvent it.

But, even after his sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs were struck down, he would have the legal means at his disposal to inflict serious measures on Spain — as he did when he jacked up tariffs against Brazil over its jailing of former President Jair Bolsonaro.

Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said he had conveyed his “surprise” to his German counterpart Johann Wadephul that Merz didn’t show solidarity in the face of Trump’s attacks. | Eduardo Parra/Europa Press via Getty Images

Trump could order an investigation under Section 301 of the U.S. Trade Act of 1974, which covers trade trade discrimination. An alternative would be a probe under Section 232 under the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, into imports that threaten national security.

“From a legal perspective, yes, it is possible,” said Charles Julien, a partner at White & Case’s international trade practice group. “There are of course limitations.” 

“Under Section 301, there’s a possibility for the U.S. Trade Representative to impose a number of measures. These include duties and restrictions. These are the most commonly used. Then there’s the possible withdrawal or suspension of trade agreement concessions,” Julien told POLITICO. 

The lawyer stressed that the situation was still “very unclear. There may be other provisions in other U.S. statutes that may be used for that purpose.” 

The drawback for Trump is that any measures would have to be preceded by an investigation that could last up to a year.

In the meantime, confidence in the U.S. among European lawmakers who are still deliberating over whether to approve the Turnberry accord has hit new lows.

Top trade lawmakers in the European Parliament decided on Wednesday, again, to defer a vote to advance enabling legislation under which the EU would fulfill its side of the bargain — chiefly to eliminate tariffs on U.S. industrial goods.

“A trade threat against an EU country is worsening the mood in the Parliament,” said Anna Cavazzini, a German Green lawmaker who sits on the trade committee.

Milena Wälde, Nette Nöstlinger and Max Griera contributed reporting.