OVIEDO, Spain

Spain’s deputy prime minister on Thursday accused European leaders of showing subservience to US President Donald Trump and sharply criticized European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s response to escalating global conflicts.

Speaking to Spanish public broadcaster RTVE, Yolanda Diaz said Europe has failed to defend international law as wars intensify in Gaza and the Middle East.

“It is an infamy that many heads of state remain silent,” Diaz said. “We are seeing a genocide in Gaza, we are seeing Trump do whatever he wants, and now another illegitimate and illegal war – and no one says anything.”

Diaz directed particular criticism at von der Leyen, calling her recent foreign policy stance “indecent” and accusing the European Commission of failing to act at a moment of mounting international instability.

“You cannot say that international legality does not matter. A democrat cannot say that, and even less the president of the European Commission,” she said, referring to von der Leyen’s speech to ambassadors earlier this week in which she called on Europe to adopt a more realistic foreign policy.

She said Trump has made it clear that the EU only “gets in his way” and that he aims to “eliminate this strong actor in the world.”

“But far from taking measures to reduce our technological, energy and financial dependence on the US and preserve this key economic and political space, we bend to Trump’s interests,” she said.

“Europe cannot remain between Washington and Beijing doing nothing,” Diaz added.

She also warned that more US-style deregulation leads to more economic insecurity across the bloc and could fuel the rise of far-right movements.

Despite her criticism of EU leadership, Diaz said Spain’s government has taken a clear stance in Brussels.

“The Spanish government today is a moral beacon,” she said. “We have spoken clearly in the heart of Europe, raising the flag of peace, international law and democracy.”

Diaz added that the government will announce new economic and social measures on Tuesday to address the effects of the economic crisis fueled by the Iran war.

The measures are expected to include protections for workers and companies facing rising energy costs, including mechanisms such as temporary employment schemes, as well as rent freezes and a ban on evictions.

“You do not have to fire anyone,” Diaz said. “We have mechanisms to accompany companies and protect workers.”