A U.S. F-22 Raptor is seen in a stock photo flying over the Pacific Ocean. Spain has closed its airspace to U.S. planes involved in the Iran war. (rancho_runner – iStock / Getty Images)
By Jack Davis March 30, 2026 at 11:27am
NATO member Spain will not allow the United States to use its airspace in the war with Iran.
Defense Minister Margarita Robles said her country had “made this clear to the American government from the beginning.”
“We will not authorize the use of Morón and Rota [military bases] for any acts related to the war in Iran,” she said, according to the BBC.
“I think everyone knows Spain’s position; it’s very clear,” Robles said.
She called the conflict with Iran “profoundly illegal and profoundly unjust,” according to NewsNation.
Spain’s leftist government has closed Spanish airspace to U.S. planes carrying out missions against Iran, in addition to denying Washington use of its bases, the defense minister said Monday. https://t.co/2TMVQTI6iQ pic.twitter.com/be4yNWqzDE
— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 30, 2026
Foreign Affairs Minister José Manuel Albares said Spain’s goal was “not do anything that could encourage an escalation in this war,” according to the BBC.
A White House official said America was “meeting or surpassing all of its goals under Operation Epic Fury and does not need help from Spain or anyone else.”
Last week, Trump fired a broadside at NATO nations for their lack of help with the war.
“NATO NATIONS HAVE DONE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO HELP WITH THE LUNATIC NATION, NOW MILITARILY DECIMATED, OF IRAN,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“THE U.S.A. NEEDS NOTHING FROM NATO, BUT ‘NEVER FORGET’ THIS VERY IMPORTANT POINT IN TIME!” Trump wrote.
Trump took those comments a step further on Friday, according to The Washington Post.
“NATO just wasn’t there” during the war, Trump told a Miami Beach investment conference.
He called that “a tremendous mistake.”
“We spend hundreds of billions of dollars a year on NATO, hundreds, protecting them, and we would have always been there for them, but now, based on their actions, I guess we don’t have to be,” he said.
“Why would we be there for them, if they’re not there for us?” Trump said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt noted that “President Trump has been very vocal and honest about his displeasure with NATO.”
Jack Davis is a freelance writer who joined The Western Journal in July 2015 and chronicled the campaign that saw President Donald Trump elected. Since then, he has written extensively for The Western Journal on the Trump administration as well as foreign policy and military issues.
Jack Davis is a freelance writer who joined The Western Journal in July 2015 and chronicled the campaign that saw President Donald Trump elected. Since then, he has written extensively for The Western Journal on the Trump administration as well as foreign policy and military issues.
Jack can be reached at jackwritings1@gmail.com.
Location
New York City
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Foreign Policy, Military & Defense Issues
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