US President Donald Trump’s tariff decisions and his stand on NATO have started backfiring and are all set to hurt the American economy and firms. While the US citizens are feeling the heat of high prices of goods due to tariffs, its defence firms are also losing out on key deals with countries like Spain, Switzerland and India. Trump has been pushing hard to sell the F-35 fighter jets to foreign nations, but has also been imposing tariffs on nations with which it wants to trade. In a setback for Trump’s policies, European nations are getting disillusioned with America’s muscle-flexing moves.
Donald Trump’s NATO funding demands and unease about Washington’s influence over allied defence systems and tariffs row have forced Spain and Switzerland to reportedly scrap their plans to buy US-built F-35 fighter jets, said reports.
According to reports, the Defence Ministry confirmed that Madrid would stick with its existing Eurofighter Typhoon fleet and transition to the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) in the coming years. Most of the country’s €10.5 billion boost in defence spending will now be channelled to European manufacturers, with plans to expand the Typhoon fleet to 115 aircraft. Twenty-five new jets are expected to arrive between 2026 and 2030.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez dismissed Trump’s proposal for NATO nations to raise defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2035 — more than double the alliance’s current 2% benchmark — calling it “unreasonable.” He stressed that Europe should not rely on U.S. protection, stating, “Only Europe will know how to protect Europe.” Trump criticised Spain’s stance as “very unfair” and hinted at possible trade retaliation, further straining relations.
Reports suggest Switzerland’s pullback from the deal follows a separate trade dispute. U.S. tariffs — including a 39% duty on Swiss exports such as watches and coffee capsules, the steepest among developed nations — were introduced after trade talks with Bern broke down. The 2021 order for 36 F-35s, worth 7.3 billion Swiss francs (about $9.1 billion), has since faced mounting opposition in the Swiss parliament.