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NATO responded this Friday to reports about an internal email from the Pentagon that explored punitive measures against Spain, clarifying that the founding treaty of the alliance does not include any provision for the suspension of NATO membership or expulsion.
Reuters revealed the existence of the document, citing an anonymous U.S. source, which stated that the email specifically mentioned Spain as a target for possible sanctions for refusing to support the U.S. and Israel's war against Iran.
The text also included a review of the diplomatic support from Washington for the British claim over the Falkland Islands and the suspension of countries categorized as "difficult" from significant positions within the alliance. The email does not suggest that the U.S. withdraw from NATO or close bases in Europe, according to the same source.
The Pentagon spokesperson, Kingsley Wilson, did not deny the document and expressed regret that allies "were not there for us," despite everything the U.S. has done for them. Wilson added that the Department of Defense will ensure that the president has credible options for our allies to stop being a paper tiger and do their part.
The Spanish president Pedro Sánchez responded from the informal summit of European leaders held this Friday in Nicosia, Cyprus: We do not work with emails. We work with official documents and official positions taken, in this case, by the Government of the United States. Sánchez emphasized that Spain supports "full cooperation with its allies, but always within the framework of international law."
The tension between Madrid and Washington dates back to February 28, 2026, when the U.S. and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against Iranian nuclear and military facilities without prior consultation with their NATO allies.
Spain refused to authorize the use of U.S. military bases on its territory —Naval Station Rota and Morón Air Base— for offensive operations, invoking the 1988 bilateral defense agreement.
The Spanish Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, was emphatic on March 30: "Spain will not authorize in any case, nor has it, nor does it, nor will it, the use of the bases of Rota and Morón to go to a war against which we are totally opposed." In retaliation, Washington transferred at least 15 KC-135 Stratotanker tanker aircraft from the Spanish bases to the German base of Ramstein and other locations.
Germany also came to Spain's defense this Friday: a spokesperson for the German government stated that "Spain is a member of NATO and I see no reason why that should change." From the same summit in Cyprus, the Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni called for unity within the alliance, pointing out that NATO is "a source of strength" and that "we must work to strengthen the European pillar of NATO, which must clearly complement the American one."
Trump described NATO last month as a "one-way street," stating: "We will protect them, but they will do nothing for us," while Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that Washington would reexamine its relationship with the alliance following the European refusal to support the war against Iran.
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