The European Union needs a permanent army to deter enemies and ensure it is not “dependent” on America for its defense, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares has said.
“We cannot be waking up every morning wondering what the US will do next. Our citizens deserve better”, Albares told Politico, amid an ongoing dispute between the two countries after Spain refused US military aircraft permission to use its airspace as part of operations related to the war in Iran.
Albares argued that uncertainty over Washington’s foreign policy and the future of the NATO alliance made “a military, a common defense capacity” necessary for Europe.
“This is the moment of the sovereignty and independence of Europe. The Americans are inviting us to that”, he said.
“We have to be free of dependence. Free of dependence means to be free of coercion, whether it comes to tariffs or the use of military threat. And free of the consequences of someone else’s decisions.”
Spain’s refusal to allow US military aircraft to use its air bases for Iran-related operations prompted threats from Washington of trade measures, troop withdrawals and even suspension from NATO.
Albares said he believes moves to create a European army would not undermine NATO, comparing it with the US army: “The United States have been making their army stronger and stronger and no one thinks that that weakens NATO. If NATO is not providing any more the security that was given before … [then] we have to do more as Europeans.”
Deterring Europe's Enemies
The Spanish foreign minister said Europe should try to recreate the kind of deterrence envisaged in Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, referring to NATO’s mutual defense clause. The goal, he said, was to make clear that any country seeking to pressure Europe should look elsewhere, because European states would stand together.
Albares has previously called for deeper military integration within the EU. In an interview with Spanish outlet Euro EFE published in January, the Socialist Party minister said Europe must integrate its defense industry and “move towards a European army” in order to avoid dependence on “third parties” for its security.
Military spending in Spain has increased by 50% to $40.2bn in 2025, according to a study by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
This brought its military expenditure above 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) for the first time since 1994, up from a low of 1.1% in 2016.
Defense spending has increased by 14% in Europe, SIPRI reports, with Germany now the continent’s largest military spender. Its expenditure grew by 24% from 2024 to 2025 to $114bn. Germany’s military burden exceeded the 2% threshold for the first time since 1990, reaching 2.3% of GDP in 2025.
According to SIPRI, the 29 European NATO members spent a combined $559bn in 2025, with 22 of them recording military spending of at least 2% of GDP.
The increased spending comes as EU member states debate the union’s defense and strategic autonomy, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying earlier this year that the bloc was seeking to become a “military powerhouse”.