Portugal has chosen its side in the transatlantic rift over the Iran campaign — and it is not standing with its neighbor. Prime Minister Luís Montenegro told parliament on Wednesday that his government had conditionally authorized the United States to use Lajes Air Base in the Azores archipelago for operations directed against Iran, placing Lisbon firmly in Washington‘s corner while Spain’s refusal to do the same has triggered American threats of a trade embargo.
The authorization, Montenegro said, was granted on three conditions: that the operations be defensive or retaliatory in nature, that they be necessary and proportionate, and that they exclusively target military objectives. He insisted these conditions were aligned with international law, though he carefully avoided stating whether he personally supported or opposed the US-Israeli strikes on Iran that began over the weekend.
A Base Already in Use
The authorization formalized what had been happening for weeks. According to the Portuguese news agency Lusa, US military activity at Lajes intensified from February 18. Fifteen KC-46 Pegasus aerial refueling aircraft were stationed at the base for over a week, alongside twelve F-16 Viper fighters and several cargo planes including a C-5M Super Galaxy. Thirteen aircraft departed on Sunday after the joint US-Israeli attack commenced.
Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel had acknowledged that the bilateral defense agreement allows for “tacit authorizations given with relatively short notice,” meaning Washington could use Lajes without formal approval during peacetime. Once hostilities began, the government moved to issue the conditional authorization Montenegro defended in parliament.
Opposition Pushes Back
The decision has drawn fierce criticism across the Portuguese political spectrum. The Socialist Party has demanded that Rangel appear before parliament to explain the legal basis for recent US force movements. André Franqueira Rodrigues, a Socialist member of the European Parliament, accused the government of accepting a subordination that weakens Portugal’s negotiating position. The Left Bloc in the Azores condemned what it called “total submission” to American interests, while the Communist Party called for protests.
Iran’s ambassador to Portugal, Majid Tafreshi, added a layer of unease when he told Antena 1 radio that while he did not expect Iran to target the Azores, Tehran considers all bases facilitating US and Israeli strikes to be legitimate military targets. With more than 10,000 Portuguese nationals living across the Gulf states now affected by the conflict, including in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, the security implications extend well beyond the mid-Atlantic.
The Iberian Divide
Montenegro declined to comment on Spain’s decision to deny base access, and he avoided expressing solidarity with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who posted “No to the war” on Wednesday and has faced Trump’s fury for his stance. Trump called Spain a “terrible” ally and threatened to sever all trade ties. France’s Emmanuel Macron and European Council President António Costa — himself Portuguese — have both refrained from criticizing the strikes, leaving Sánchez increasingly isolated among European leaders.
Sovereignty on a Short Leash
Montenegro’s parliamentary performance revealed the awkward space Portugal occupies. He stressed that Portugal was not involved in the military action, yet in the same breath affirmed Lisbon’s closer relationship with Washington than with Tehran. The three conditions he outlined may provide legal cover, but they also raise questions about how Portugal could meaningfully enforce them once aircraft leave Lajes. For a small NATO member caught between alliance loyalty and domestic unease, the conditional authorization is an exercise in strategic ambiguity — designed to satisfy Washington without fully confronting the political cost at home.