President Donald Trump stated Friday that Senator Lindsey Graham was right to urge the withdrawal of U.S. military bases from Spain and other non-cooperating NATO allies.

The comments came as Trump departed the White House via helicopter. A reporter asked about Graham's recent push to reconsider U.S. bases in Spain and Germany amid European allies' reluctance to assist with operations related to Iran, including securing the Strait of Hormuz. Trump replied, "Well, he's right about asking that. I think NATO has gone a long way. They should be helping us more."

Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, had called for pulling U.S. assets from countries that bar American forces from using their facilities during critical missions. Spain specifically denied access to its Rota naval base and Morón air base for U.S. strikes on Iran earlier this month, citing a lack of United Nations approval. The U.S. relocated 15 aircraft, including refueling tankers, from those southern Spanish bases as a result.

Tensions escalated on March 3 when Trump threatened a full trade embargo on Spain during an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. "We're going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don't want anything to do with Spain," Trump said, also criticizing Spain's defense spending.

Spain remains the sole NATO member refusing Trump's push for allies to allocate 5% of GDP to defense, 3.5% on core military, and 1.5% on broader security, despite broad agreement at a prior summit. Madrid insists 2.1% suffices for its capabilities. Trump highlighted this during his trade threat, calling Spain "the only country that in NATO would not agree to go up to 5%."

Graham's proposal extends to broader European hesitance on countering Iranian threats in the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route. He argued for relocating bases to more supportive locations, such as Israel.

The Rota base hosts U.S. destroyers for ballistic missile defense, while Morón supports air operations. Withdrawing them would signal a major shift in U.S. posture toward NATO burden-sharing, echoing Trump's first-term moves like troop reductions in Germany.

No immediate response came from the Spanish government on Saturday morning. NATO officials have not commented on the latest exchange.