The White House now says that Spain has "agreed to cooperate militarily with the US," and the Moncloa Palace denies it.

Washington / MadridThe White House now says that "in the last few hours" Spain "has agreed to cooperate with the US military" in the war against Iran. But the Moncloa Palace denies it. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that "the US military is coordinating with its counterparts in Spain, but the president [Donald Trump] is confident that all of Europe will cooperate in this mission," she said this Wednesday during the daily press conference. Shortly afterward, the Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, publicly denied it. "I categorically deny it," he asserted in an interview on Cadena SER radio. The minister, who appeared very annoyed by the spokesperson's statements, repeated it three times. "I have no idea what [the White House spokesperson] was referring to, and I want to make something clear: Spain's position regarding the US bases [in Rota and Morón] has not changed at all," he stated. The Spanish government has rejected the notion that these bases are being used as a support point for the war in Iran, arguing that the agreement signed with the United States recognizes this.

The clash came shortly after Defense Minister Margarita Robles and the US Ambassador to Spain, Benjamin León, met for the first time since the US representative arrived in Madrid a month ago. In fact, the meeting had been scheduled before the US and Israeli attack on Iran, and the Spanish government and embassy decided to proceed. At the meeting, which took place before the press conference at the White House, Robles conveyed to the ambassador Spain's "reliability" as a partner in the Atlantic Alliance and the "commitment of the State and the Armed Forces to defense and peace, as demonstrated by the various missions and deployments," as stated in a press release from the ministry.

However, Leavitt's statements come after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stood firm on Wednesday morning against the US president's threats to cut off trade relations with Madrid. The tycoon even raised the possibility of an "embargo" as punishment for Sánchez's opposition to increasing defense spending to 5% of GDP.

This morning, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent again attacked Spain: "It is putting American lives at risk," he said. Nevertheless, Albares denied being afraid of Trump's threats: "Why should I fear a country like Spain that defends international law and seeks peace?" he questioned.