Spain's economy minister says 'overtourism' challenges need to be addressed

MADRID (AP) — Spain could receive as many as 100 million tourists this year, according to some projections, which the country’s economy minister said poses challenges for residents that the government can no longer afford to ignore.

Last year, Spain received a record 94 million international visitors, making it one of the most visited countries in the world.

“It’s important to understand that these record numbers in terms of tourism also pose challenges,” Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo said in an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press. “And we need to deal with those challenges also for our own population.”

Tourism is a key sector for the Southern European nation's economy, which grew faster than any major advanced economy last year at 3.2%, and is projected to grow at 2.4% this year, according to the Bank of Spain, well ahead of the expected eurozone average of 0.9%.

But a stubborn housing crisis in which home and rental costs have skyrocketed in cities such as Madrid, Barcelona and elsewhere has led to growing frustration about one aspect tied to tourism in particular: the proliferation of short-term rental apartments in city centers.

The country has seen several large protests that have drawn tens of thousands of people to demand more government action on housing. Signs at demonstrations with slogans such as “Get Airbnb out of our neighborhoods” point to the growing anger.

In response, the government recently announced it was cracking down on Airbnb listings that it said were operating in the country illegally, a decision that the company is appealing.

“We are a 49 million-inhabitants country," Cuerpo said. The record numbers of tourists illustrate the “attractiveness of our country, but also of the challenge that we have in terms of dealing and providing for a good experience for tourists, but at the same time avoiding overcharging (for) our own services and our own housing,” he said.

The Bank of Spain recently said the country has a deficit of 450,000 homes. Building more public housing is critical to solve the problem, Cuerpo said. Spain has a lower stock of public housing than many other major European Union countries.

“This is the key challenge for this term,” the minister said of the country's housing woes.

On the possibility of more U.S. tariffs on EU goods, the top economic policymaker for the eurozone's fourth-largest economy said he believed the EU still wanted to reinforce economic ties with the U.S.

“From the EU side, we are constructive but we are not naive," Cuerpo said, adding that the bloc would pursue “other routes protecting our firms and industries” if no agreement with the Trump administration can be reached.

A 90-day pause on tariffs announced by the EU and the U.S. is slated to end on July 14. About halfway through that grace period, U.S. President Donald Trump announced 50% tariffs on steel imports. The U.S. has also enacted a 25% tariff on vehicles and 10% so-called reciprocal tariffs on most other goods.

On how Spain's current housing woes got here, the minister said a steep drop in construction in Spain following the 2008 financial crisis played a role. So did population growth due to immigration, Cuerpo said, and pressures from an increase in the number of tourists.

While building more housing is key, the minister advocated for an all-of-the-above approach, including regulating Spain's housing market and short-term rental platforms.

“For us, there’s no silver bullet,” he said.

Spain's Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the Economy Ministry in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Paul White)

Spain's Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the Economy Ministry in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Paul White)

FILE - Tourists sit on a public bench at Plaza Mayor in downtown Madrid, Spain, April 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)

FILE - Demonstrators march shouting slogans against the Formula 1 Barcelona Fan Festival in downtown Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, June 19, 2024, during residents protest against mass tourism. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)

Spain's Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the Economy Ministry in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Paul White)

A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.

A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.

Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.

The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”

Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.

Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)