Italy, Spain agree to end border controls after nearly 3 months of tensions over Ceuta

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - Italy and Spain agreed Thursday not to extend temporary border controls introduced nearly three months ago amid tensions over mass migrant arrivals in Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta.

Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi and his Spanish counterpart Fernando Grande-Marlaska reached the agreement during a telephone conversation, the Italian Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The call followed a meeting between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on the sidelines of a European Council meeting.

The ministers agreed that "the Schengen suspensions in force in the two countries will not be extended further," according to the statement.

The ministry said the decision followed a "careful" assessment of the situation and would be accompanied by increased information-sharing to ensure security across the Schengen area.

The Schengen area normally allows travel between participating European countries without routine border checks, although governments can temporarily reintroduce controls in response to serious security threats.

Italy introduced the checks on Aug. 1 after around 72,000 people crossed irregularly from Morocco into Ceuta on July 30-31, according to the Spanish central government’s estimate.

The Spanish government described Italy's move as “unjust,” stressing that Ceuta has a special status under the Schengen system and that migrants who entered the territory cannot travel freely into Europe's passport-free area.

On Aug. 8, Madrid responded with random checks on travelers arriving from Italy, citing migration pressure along the Central Mediterranean route and unauthorized onward movements to other Schengen countries.

Beyza Binnur Dönmez