Finance
Spain rules out participating in military operations in strait of hormuz
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 16, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 16, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 16, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 16, 2026
Spain’s government has firmly ruled out joining any military operations in the Strait of Hormuz, deeming the U.S.–Israeli war on Iran illegal under international law and reinforcing its refusal to permit use of its bases for the conflict.
MADRID, March 16 (Reuters) - Spain will not take part in any military mission in the Strait of Hormuz because it considers the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran to be illegal, Madrid's defence and foreign affairs ministers said on Monday.
The leftist coalition government led by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has criticised the offensive and banned participating U.S. aircraft from using jointly operated bases in southern Spain.
Defence Minister Margarita Robles rejected a demand by U.S. President Donald Trump for military support to secure the waterway - which Tehran has de facto blocked to oil tanker traffic - and his threats of a "very bad future" for NATO allies failing to do so.
"Spain will never accept any stopgap measures, because the objective must be for the war to end, and for it to end now," Robles said.
The situation in the strait is a matter of grave concern for Europeans, but the European Union's position should be that the war must end regardless of economic considerations, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said.
"We mustn't do anything that would add even more tension or cause the situation to escalate further," he told reporters in Brussels.
Some EU members such as Germany, Italy or Greece have also signalled they will not join military operations in the strait, while others including Denmark have yet to make a decision.
(Reporting by David Latona; Editing by Charlie Devereux and Kevin Liffey)
Spain considers the US-Israeli war on Iran illegal and has decided not to participate in military missions in the Strait of Hormuz.
Spain has rejected the US demand for military support to secure the Strait of Hormuz and banned US aircraft from using jointly operated bases.
Spain's leftist coalition government criticized the offensive, urging for the war to end immediately and avoiding escalation.
Other EU members like Germany, Italy, and Greece have also indicated they will not participate in such operations.
The situation in the Strait is a concern for Europe, with implications for oil tanker traffic and financial markets.
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