Border Restrictions and Reciprocal Measures

Spain began border controls at midnight (22:00 GMT) and will maintain them for a month in response to Italy’s similar measures, which were introduced following an influx of around 78,000 migrants from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Spain’s government said the measures would include passport, nationality, and visa checks for Italian passengers and visitors from other countries arriving from Italy amid the persistent irregular migratory pressure the country was experiencing. The checks would stay in place until 7 September unless circumstances change.

On Friday, Spain demanded Italy reverse its border checks by Sunday, but Italy stated that the restrictions would remain until at least 15 August, when it said Spain “expects a new wave of migration” to hit Ceuta. The crisis has pitted Spain’s socialist leader Pedro Sanchez against Italy’s conservative leader Giorgia Meloni, who has long advocated for stricter EU migration rules. Italy does not share a land border with Spain, and its government explained the decision to temporarily suspend the border-free Schengen arrangement was to prevent any of the migrants who had entered Ceuta from travelling on to Italy.

Dispute Over the Schengen Agreement

Madrid dismissed Italy’s position, calling it based on “spurious arguments” that lacked any factual basis, as the migrants who entered Ceuta had no way of entering the Schengen area. In its response to the Spanish threat earlier on Friday, Italy’s government said it would not accept “ultimatums” and reiterated that it did not intend to reconsider the decision to suspend the Schengen Agreement for third-country nationals arriving from Spain until August 15 and until security and terrorist risks for Italy have been completely eliminated.

Italian officials stated that local authorities carrying out the checks do “everything possible” to ensure maximum comfort for both Spanish and other European citizens arriving in Italy from Spain. Rome has also reiterated that Spanish citizens are exempt from additional checks when arriving in Italy, with these extra steps only for non-EU residents. However, El Pais reported that several airport terminals have seen long queues and waiting times in recent days, with passengers arriving from Spain directed to a specific line for checks.

Diplomatic Tensions and Migration Pressures

Temporary suspensions of the Schengen agreement are not historic. Italy also maintains controls on its border with Slovenia. Italy’s decision to suspend Schengen for a month was backed by Finland and Denmark, while the Czech Republic called for Spain’s membership to be temporarily suspended. Most of the migrants who arrived in Ceuta last week were returned within days, but nearly 1,400 minors, some of them “very young boys and girls,” still remain there.

Spain has not announced an anticipated second wave of crossings from Morocco. Reports have been fuelled by social media activity by Moroccan users planning another attempt, El Pais reports. The Spanish prime minister’s office told the newspaper they were monitoring the situation but did not expect a repeat of scenes from last week.

It remains unclear exactly why tens of thousands of migrants attempted to cross into Ceuta, but the EU’s Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner has suggested criminal networks spreading disinformation were to blame—an assertion the Spanish government has agreed with. The crossings came after Spain’s Supreme Court ruled that migrants stopped at sea while trying to reach Ceuta or Melilla cannot be summarily returned to Morocco.

Morocco, for its part, has laid blame for the crisis on the court, with an unnamed government source briefing local outlets that “the deterrent element of the system collapsed and the dam gave way, not under the weight of the criminals, but of a judge’s decision.” The number of people swimming to Ceuta at once has raised questions about why Morocco’s border guards did not attempt to stop them. The two exclaves have long been a bone of diplomatic contention between Spain and Morocco, which does not recognize Spanish sovereignty over them.