Spain’s Ministry of Defense has announced it will no longer pursue the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II as a replacement for its aging fighter fleet, citing growing tensions with Washington over defense and foreign policy. A key point of contention is Spain’s refusal to meet NATO’s collective target of increasing defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035—a goal agreed upon by other member states.

Instead, Spanish defense officials plan to expand their fleet of Eurofighter Typhoons and commit to the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), a sixth-generation fighter project being co-developed with France and Germany. Despite ongoing development challenges and delays, the FCAS is expected to enter service around 2040.