Spain balances with the US amid trade clash with China

Washington / MadridThe Spanish government is practicing tariff tightrope walking amid the crossfire between the two trading giants: the United States and China. Following Spanish President Pedro Sánchez's visit to Beijing—including a photo with Chinese President Xi Jinping—this Monday, Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo met in Washington with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. "For us, the open door to negotiation that opened last week with the 90-day moratorium is confirmed," Cuerpo said upon leaving the meeting, which he described as "frank and constructive."

The Economy Minister reiterated the need to "sit down and negotiate" and highlighted Brussels' leadership in the negotiations. "We are aware that we must continue offering dialogue, and Europe is involved in that, and Spain is supporting, without a doubt, the Commission's actions," the Spanish representative told the media. Cuerpo's meeting with Bessent comes the day after European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic met for the third time with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and other members of the Trump administration.

The European representative's visit on Monday was the first since the easing of tariffs on European products, although it did not end with any major developments. "The EU remains constructive and is prepared to reach a fair agreement, including reciprocity through our 0-for-0 tariff offer on industrial goods," Sefcovic assured.

Asked how the Treasury Secretary views the current trade war, Cuerpo explained that his vision is of a "transitory situation and that by the end of the year this situation could be reversed in a positive way for the United States as well."

The meeting coincides with Donald Trump's partial tariff truce—which for 90 days will only apply 10% to European imports—and comes after Bessent criticized Spain for getting closer to China. During a meeting with bankers, the Treasury Secretary warned that getting closer to the Asian giant "would be like cutting one's own throat." The American spoke in the midst of the chaos unleashed by his president's announcement on reciprocal tariffs, in which the European Union had promised retaliation and various member countries were seeking trade alternatives in the US market. Before the meeting, the Spanish government had assured that the visit to Washington was part of the framework of "normality" and that it had already been scheduled before Sánchez's trip to China and Vietnam.

The same day Bessent sent the warning to Spain, Trump announced the partial tariff truce—because it applied a global 10% tariff—with the exception of China, for which it ended up increasing the tariff to 145%. The Trump administration's objective with the pause is to isolate Beijing. And Spain, and the EU, are navigating amid tensions between the two powers, which represent approximately 40% of global trade.

During the meeting with Xi Jinping, Sánchez responded to the US warning by insisting that "Spanish foreign policy is not against anyone, it is in defense of understanding between countries, of the multilateral order and of free trade." Meanwhile, his Chinese counterpart argued that the EU should collaborate with the Asian giant to "jointly resist the."

The Body has framed Spain's rapprochement with China within "the agenda" of the European Union with the Asian country. European Union. There is ample room to do so," he stated. Although Brussels had sought to distance itself from China in recent years, the anti-Europeanism of the new United States administration – both in trade and diplomatic matters – makes the Twenty-Seven view Beijing with different eyes Sefcovic. On the other hand, London seems to be making more progress on Tuesday morning Vice President JD Vance assured that there is "an opportunity" to reach an agreement with the United Kingdom.

In the midst of this tariff chaos, the Spanish government has taken a further step in terms of measures to protect affected companies. This Tuesday's Council of Ministers activated the first €1 billion of a total of €5 billion from one of the ICO's guarantee lines. Of these, €750 million will be allocated to liquidity for companies and €250 million to new investment projects. The ICO guarantees can be requested once financial institutions join and will be available until June 30, 2026.

Companies with exports and imports to the United States exceeding 5% of their turnover, as well as indirectly exposed companies (they are part of the value chain for an affected product), will be eligible to access the guarantees. The guarantee may cover up to 80% of the loan granted, and the repayment period will be up to ten years.