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U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to soften his rhetoric regarding Spain after being informed of the country's increased contributions to NATO, according to Spanish officials. The shift came just hours after Trump had publicly labeled Spain a "terrible partner" and threatened to halt trade due to disputes over defense spending and the Iran war.

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They honored a request for lots of payments, and if they didn't, we wouldn't have even talked to them.

During a NATO summit, Trump's initial remarks were critical, but he later told reporters that Spain had been "very generous" and had honored a request for significant payments. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's office indicated this referred to Madrid's compliance with NATO's former defense spending target of 2% of GDP. Sanchez had emphasized at the summit that Spain would meet this goal this year, having more than doubled its nominal defense spending since 2017.

Despite this apparent de-escalation, Trump continues to express concerns about Spain's commitment to a new NATO objective requiring member states to spend 5% of GDP on defense by 2035. Spain's current government argues for prioritizing spending based on real threats rather than arbitrary increases that could impact social benefits.

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I did have issues, and I still do. But Spain, they came back all the way today. Spain was very generous today.

The implications of Trump's softened rhetoric on his trade threat remain unclear. U.S. officials stated that relevant agencies would present Trump with options for Spanish products that could be embargoed, potentially invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. This follows a previous instance where the Trump administration imposed tariffs on Spanish olives in 2018.

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They honored a request for lots of payments, and if they didn't, we wouldn't have even talked to them.