The United States has launched an investigation into allegations that Spain, a NATO ally, has been denying port access to cargo vessels reportedly transporting US weapons to Israel, The Associated Press reported.
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), an independent agency responsible for monitoring shipping and US international trade, announced the probe after receiving reports that Spain had blocked at least three cargo ships from entering its ports.
“The commission is concerned that this apparent policy of denying entry to certain vessels will create conditions unfavorable to shipping in the foreign trade,” the FMC stated Thursday in a notice published in the Federal Register.
Should the investigation confirm that Spain interfered with commerce, the commission could impose significant penalties—up to $2.3 million per voyage, according to the notice.
The FMC noted it was informed on November 19 that Spain had denied port entry to vessels, including some participating in the US-run Maritime Security Program. This program is designed to protect vessels and their operators from “restrictive and discriminatory” licensing practices, as these ships are often used for US military purposes.
The commission highlighted three incidents in its report: two in November involving ships operated by the Danish shipping company Maersk, and one in May.
Spanish authorities have not yet commented on the November incidents. However, in May, Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente confirmed that the foreign ministry had denied docking permission to the Danish-flagged ship Marianne Danica, stating it “was carrying weapons to Israel.”
Spain’s restrictions on vessels carrying weapons to Israel followed the Spanish government’s vocal criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza, which followed the Hamas massacre in southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
Last November, Spain’s Ambassador to Israel was summoned by the Foreign Ministry after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez claimed that "Israel is violating international law and is carrying out indiscriminate killings in Gaza."
In April, Sanchez criticized what he called Israel's "disproportionate response" in the Gaza war, saying it risks "destabilizing the Middle East, and as a consequence, the entire world".
Spain and Israel have also been at odds ever since Spain, Norway, and Ireland formally recognized a Palestinian state this past May.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)