Is Italy playing fast and loose with European solidarity? In response to the arrival of tens of thousands of migrants in Ceuta, a Spanish exclave bordering Morocco, Giorgia Meloni’s government decided in late July to temporarily suspend the Schengen Area agreement with Spain and to reinstate air and sea border controls for non-EU citizens arriving from the country. The suspension is set to last one month.
Rome cited a potential “risk of terrorist infiltration” caused by the massive influx of migrants into Spain, though the majority quickly turned back once they had crossed the border. Italy’s actions have sparked a surge in diplomatic tensions with Spain, and set a dangerous legal precedent regarding compliance with the European treaties.
Conservative and far-right European parties and governments have stepped up their condemnations and threats against Madrid in the wake of the crisis in Ceuta. Their primary target is Spanish Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who they view as too lenient and welcoming when it comes to migration – which they believe could jeopardize the security of their own borders. In turn, various observers have criticised the right for exploiting the “Ceuta crisis” through widespread disinformation – notably by omitting that Ceuta is subjet to a specific, more restictive, Schengen regime.
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