Sánchez: Ties with US must be 'with respect' and 'on an equal footing' Iran dispute

Sánchez defends Spain amid Trump trade threats

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Friday that relations with the United States should be guided by “loyal cooperation” rather than confrontation, amid rising tensions over Madrid’s refusal to allow US forces to use Spanish bases for strikes against Iran.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro in the southern city of Huelva, Sánchez said ties between allies should be conducted “with respect, in a spirit of loyal cooperation and on an equal footing”.

He reiterated his criticism of the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, describing them as an “extraordinary mistake” and “not in accordance with international law”.

“Between allied countries, it is good to help when the other is right, but also to tell them when they are wrong or make a mistake, as is the case here,” the Socialist leader added.

Tensions escalated earlier in the week after US President Donald Trump attacked Sánchez’s government, calling Spain a “terrible” ally and threatening to cut off trade with the country.

Sánchez responded by reinforcing his position, rejecting the use of Spanish bases in southern Spain for operations targeting Iran and maintaining his opposition to the war.

Trump further criticised Spain in an interview with the New York Post on Thursday, calling it "a loser".

Sanchez, one of a dwindling number of leftist leaders in Europe, had already angered Trump with other policy clashes.

He has refused to join NATO allies in a pledge to boost defence spending to five percent of GDP as demanded by Trump, and has fiercely criticised Israel's war in Gaza.

Sanchez also blasted Washington's military operation to abduct and arrest president Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela. He wrote an op-ed for The New York Times last month criticising Trump's crackdown on migrants in the United States.

Despite the tension, Sanchez said Friday he had "immense respect for the US presidency and great admiration for American society".

In contrast with Spain, Portugal has allowed Washington to use its Lajes base on the Azores Islands in the Atlantic during the Iran bombing campaign.

Montenegro said that while Portugal stood with the United States, "threats and accusations are not the way to manage relations between allies."

A majority of Spaniards, 53.2 percent, back Sanchez's decision not to let the United States use the Rota naval base and Moron airbase, according to a poll published Friday in daily newspaper El Pais.

(With AFP inputs)