In June, NATO, which includes 32 countries, agreed to significantly increase defense spending over the next decade under pressure from Trump.

On Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump proposed expelling Spain from NATO due to its failure to meet the defense spending requirement of 5% of GDP, which he had previously emphasized.

Trump told reporters at the White House, “We have one delinquent member, Spain,” adding, “They have no excuse for not achieving it, but that’s okay. Honestly, maybe they should be kicked out of NATO.”

In June, NATO agreed to significantly increase defense spending over the next decade under pressure from Trump, who had threatened to penalize Madrid in trade for not meeting the new 5% target.

Spanish Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez insisted that Madrid would not need to reach this high figure. Spain is among the NATO countries with relatively low defense spending.

The U.S. president, who has repeatedly indicated that Washington might withhold protection from European countries unwilling to spend more on defense, stressed that the 5% step is essential to keep his country engaged in NATO.

This main figure is divided into 3.5% for core defense spending and 1.5% for a more flexible set of areas such as infrastructure and cybersecurity.