Washington DC - President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to cut off trade with Spain after its government refused to let US planes use its bases to attack Iran.

Trump voiced fury at Spain, where the government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has not allowed the US to target Tehran through bases long used by US forces.

"Spain has been terrible," he told reporters as he met with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House, adding that he has asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to "cut off all dealings with Spain."

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The president also pointed to Sanchez's public refusal to join NATO allies in a pledge to boost defense spending to 5% of GDP, a level pushed by Trump, which says the US bears too much of a burden.

"So we're going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don't want anything to do with Spain."

It remains unclear what power Trump would have to "end" trade with Spain, after the Supreme Court struck down his use of emergency powers to slap arbitrary tariffs on other countries.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares earlier said that his government would only allow the use of the Naval Base Rota and Moron Air Base for activities consistent with the United Nations Charter.

Trump similarly slammed the UK for not fully backing his war on Iran, saying of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, "This is not Winston Churchill that we're dealing with."