President Trump told his Treasury Secretary on July 8 to stop all trade and tourism between the United States and Spain. The reason: Spain is not spending enough on its military compared to what NATO expects. "Cut off all trade with Spain, please, including visits," Trump said, according to Politico. He called Spain a "terrible partner" in NATO.

Understanding the dispute requires knowing what NATO agreed to. NATO is a military alliance of North American and European countries that work together for defense. In June, NATO members agreed they should each spend 5 percent of their country's total economic output on military budgets. Spain said that amount was too much and too fast. NATO let Spain skip this requirement through a special exemption — an exception to the rule. Trump has complained about Spain's exception multiple times, and this week's order is his strongest move yet.

But there is a problem: no one knows if Trump can actually do this. The US and Spain do not have a separate trade agreement. They trade through a larger agreement between the US and the entire European Union. The Treasury Department may not have the legal power to block all Spanish trade without formal paperwork — like a signed executive order — first. Stopping tourism would be even harder because millions of Americans visit Spain every year, and there are long-standing agreements that let Americans travel there easily.

Trump made these comments the same day the White House made other statements about prices and international conflicts. This fits a pattern: Trump uses threats of trade cuts as a tool to pressure countries on things he wants from them, mixing it all together rather than handling trade as its own separate issue.

Spain's government had already increased its military spending in recent years, just not as fast as Trump wants. The country worked within NATO's own system to get an exception because its leaders believed spending that much would hurt their economy or was not needed to help NATO. Trump is now trying to force Spain outside of that system by threatening trade cuts instead.

The money involved matters. Spain gets a lot of income from American tourists visiting its beaches and cities. American companies also do business in Spain's energy, construction, and banking sectors. If Trump follows through, both countries would lose money, and neither side seems ready for that kind of conflict.

What stands out is how far apart Trump's words are from what he actually does. Trump has threatened trade cuts many times before in disputes about spending and alliances, but he does not always follow through. Whether the Treasury Department actually takes action — or whether this joins a long list of threats that never happen — will matter a lot. If it becomes real policy, Spain will have to do more than complain diplomatically. If it fades away, things stay as they were. Other NATO countries with their own spending deals are paying attention to see which way this goes.