ARLINGTON, VA – APRIL 8: U.S. Army Secretary Pete Hegseth departs after a press conference at the Pentagon on April 8, 2026 in Arlington, Virginia. A temporary ceasefire has been announced between the United States, Iran and Israel, with Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz and halting attacks for about two weeks while negotiations continue towards a long-term agreement. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Andrew Harnik | Getty Images News | Getty Images
An internal Pentagon email outlines options for the United States to punish NATO allies believed to have failed to support U.S. operations in the war against Iran, including suspending Spain from the alliance and reviewing the U.S. position on British claims to the Falkland Islands, U.S. officials told Reuters.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the contents of the email, said the policy options were detailed in a memo expressing frustration with the seeming reluctance or refusal of some allies to grant the United States access, bases and overflight rights (known as ABO) in the Iran war.
The official said the email stated that ABO “is just the gold standard for NATO,” adding that the option was circulating at high levels in the Pentagon.
One of the options in the email includes suspending “difficult” countries from important or prestigious positions in NATO, officials said.
President Donald Trump harshly criticized NATO allies for not sending naval forces to help open the Strait of Hormuz, which had been closed to global shipping since the start of the air war on February 28.
He also announced that he was considering withdrawing from the alliance.
“Would you not do that if you were me?” President Trump asked Reuters in an April 1 interview in response to a question about the possibility of the United States withdrawing from NATO.
But the email does not suggest the U.S. will do so, officials said. Nor is it proposing to close any European locations.
But the official declined to say whether the option included some military drawdowns from Europe, which the United States had widely expected.
Asked to comment on the email, Pentagon spokesman Kingsley Wilson said: “As President Trump has said, despite everything the United States has done for our NATO allies, they have not been there for us.
“The Department of the Army will assure the president that he has credible options to ensure that allies do their part and not be papier-mâché tigers. I have no further comment on internal deliberations to that effect,” Wilson said.
Trump administration recognizes European ‘sense of entitlement’
The U.S.-Israel war with Iran has raised serious questions about the future of the 76-year-old alliance and raised unprecedented concerns that the United States would not come to its aid if its European allies were attacked, analysts and diplomats say.
Britain, France and others say participating in a U.S. naval blockade is tantamount to going to war, but they intend to help keep the Straits open once a permanent ceasefire is achieved or the conflict ends.
But Trump administration officials have stressed that NATO cannot be a one-way street.
They have expressed frustration with Spain, where the Socialist Party leadership has said it will not allow its bases or airspace to be used to attack Iran. The United States has two important military bases in Spain: Rota Naval Base and Moron Air Base.
The policy options outlined in the email are aimed at “reducing the sense of entitlement on the European side” and sending a strong signal to NATO allies, a senior official said in a summary of the email.
The email argues that the option to suspend Spain from the alliance would have limited impact on U.S. military operations, but would have a large symbolic impact.
The official did not say how the United States would pursue Spain’s withdrawal from the alliance, and Reuters could not immediately determine whether NATO had an existing mechanism to do so.
The memo also includes options to consider revising U.S. diplomatic support for long-standing European “imperial enclaves” such as the Falkland Islands near Argentina.
The islands are administered by the United Kingdom, but are still claimed by Argentina, whose libertarian President Javier Milley is an ally of President Trump, according to the State Department website.
Britain and Argentina fought a brief war over the island in 1982 after Argentina tried unsuccessfully to occupy it. Approximately 650 Argentine and 255 British soldiers died before Argentina surrendered.
President Trump has repeatedly insulted British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, calling the US’ reluctance to join the war against Iran cowardly, saying the prime minister is “no Winston Churchill” and describing Britain’s aircraft carrier as a “toy”.
Britain initially rejected a US request to allow its aircraft to attack Iran from two British bases, but later agreed to allow a defense mission aimed at protecting local residents, including British nationals, amid Iranian retaliation.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told reporters at the Pentagon earlier this month that the war with Iran has “brought a lot of things into the light,” noting that Iran’s long-range missiles won’t hit the United States but could reach Europe.
“We have questions, we have obstacles, we have hesitations. If we don’t have a country that comes together when we need it, we’re not an ally,” Hegseth said.
