Italy and Spain lift mutual border controls after Ceuta standoff
The two countries will stop applying border checks to each other's citizens, ending a three-month suspension of Schengen rules triggered by mass crossings into the Spanish enclave.
At a glance
- Italy and Spain will stop applying border controls to each other's citizens, ending a three-month Schengen standoff.
- The dispute began after Italy suspended open-border arrangements with Spain on July 31, and Madrid retaliated in kind.
- It followed the entry of upwards of 70,000 people into Spain's Ceuta enclave from Morocco on July 30 and 31.
Italy and Spain have agreed to lift the border controls they imposed on each other's citizens, ending a three-month standoff that began after tens of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers entered the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco.
Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi and his Spanish counterpart, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, spoke by phone and agreed not to extend their suspension of the European Union's open-border Schengen arrangements, an Italian statement said on Thursday.
The ministry said the decision was reached "after a careful assessment of the situation" and would be accompanied by enhanced information-sharing measures to ensure "the full security of the common Schengen area."
The move followed a meeting between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on the sidelines of a European Council meeting.
How the standoff began
Italy's right-wing government first suspended its open-border arrangements with Spain on July 31, saying it wanted to make sure no migrants entering the North African enclave of Ceuta could travel to Italian territory. Madrid responded with similar action, describing the Italian measures as "unjust, contrary to European Union interests, and discriminatory to the population of Spain."
The tit-for-tat closures followed the entry of upwards of 70,000 people who swam around barricades into Ceuta from neighbouring Morocco on July 30 and 31, fuelling tension in the Spanish territory. Most returned to Morocco within hours, but thousands, including unaccompanied minors, remained in the territory for weeks, often in dire conditions.
"We thought our government was going to do something in the short or medium term, but we've been here for two months, and these people haven't been sent back," Ceuta resident Ruben Gonzalez said.
Political pressure in Spain
The Spanish government's handling of the mass crossing into Ceuta has complicated Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's bid for re-election in November. Sanchez was already facing criticism over his government's decision to open a path to legal status for hundreds of thousands of undocumented foreign residents.
After the Ceuta incident, the far-right Vox and centre-right PP parties accused him of being soft on immigration and put the issue at the centre of their campaigns in the run-up to next month's elections.
Source: Al Jazeera.
Questions and answers
- Why did Italy and Spain impose border controls on each other?
- Italy suspended its open-border Schengen arrangements with Spain on July 31, saying it wanted to ensure no migrants entering Ceuta could reach Italian territory. Madrid called the measures discriminatory to Spain's population and took similar action in response.
- How many people crossed into Ceuta?
- Upwards of 70,000 people swam around barricades and entered the Spanish enclave from neighbouring Morocco on July 30 and 31. Most returned to Morocco within hours, but thousands, including unaccompanied minors, remained for weeks in often dire conditions.
- What happens to Schengen border rules now?
- The Italian and Spanish interior ministers agreed not to extend their suspensions of the EU's open-border arrangements. Italy said the decision will be accompanied by enhanced information-sharing to ensure the security of the common Schengen area.
