Rubio said the United States found that Spain, a NATO member it is obligated to defend, denied the US use of its airspace and boasted about it, according to a transcript of a statement to Al Jazeera released by his department yesterday, HINA reports.
He also said Washington had faced resistance to using military bases in Spain and elsewhere. NATO is useful to the United States because it allows troops and equipment to be stationed abroad, Rubio said.
“But if NATO is only concerned with defending Europe if it’s attacked, and then denying us the right to station when we need it, that’s not a very good arrangement. It’s hard to stay engaged and say this is good for the United States. So it’s all going to have to be re-examined,” Rubio added, stressing that NATO “cannot be a one-way street.”
“Hopefully we can fix it. We’ll have time to deal with it later,” he added. Spain has closed its airspace to flights linked to the Iran war, and previously barred the United States from using the Rota and Morón bases in Andalusia for operations.
The facilities have long been jointly managed by Spain and the US. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized NATO allies for what he sees as insufficient support in the conflict. Article 5 of NATO’s mutual defense clause does not apply to the war that the United States and Israel have launched against Iran.
(Vijesti.ba)
