Meloni suspends the Schengen Area with Spain, and Sánchez responds that Italy receives twice as many irregular arrivals

Eduardo González The Italian government of Giorgia Meloni has announced the temporary suspension of the Schengen free movement area with Spain due to the influx of irregular immigrants into Spain. The Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, responded by stating, with figures, that Italy receives twice as many irregular arrivals as Spain, and with a message: “Solidarity and empathy are optional. Respect for European treaties and the data is not.” “The Government has decided to temporarily suspend the free movement regime provided for by Schengen on maritime and air links with Spain, reintroducing border controls,” Meloni posted on social media. “This is an extraordinary measure, adopted to safeguard national security and prevent possible repercussions for our nation.” The measure will remain in effect only for as long as necessary, with particular attention to limiting any impact on summer tourism flows,” he continued. “At the same time, Italy is ready to support any European initiative to back the Spanish institutions that is necessary to restore full control of the Union’s external borders and to decisively address the current situation,” he affirmed. “Defending borders means defending the security of citizens, combating irregular immigration, and striking at the criminal networks that traffic in human beings,” he concluded. For his part, the Italian Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, warned that “the temporary suspension of Schengen with Spain is a necessary choice to protect the security of our citizens and defend European borders, a measure foreseen by the treaties and which today has become unavoidable.” “The migrant crisis in Ceuta reminds us that managing the Union’s borders is a shared responsibility of our countries towards one another.” “It is necessary to work together to prevent uncontrolled flows of migrants from entering EU territory, with all the consequent risks and the threat of terrorism, which must be combated without hesitation,” he added. Following Italy’s announcement, Pedro Sánchez posted on social media: “Solidarity and empathy are optional. Respect for European treaties and the data is not.” “Number of irregular entries between 2021 and 2026 according to Frontex: via Italy: 478,600; via the Western Balkans: 340,600; via Greece: 259,800; via Spain: 234,760; via the eastern border: 48,000,” he added. For his part, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares wrote that “virtually all of those who entered Ceuta have already returned to Morocco.” “It is not possible to travel from Ceuta and Melilla to the Peninsula without identifying oneself at a police checkpoint.” The integrity of the Schengen area is absolutely guaranteed. “Enough of this self-serving confusion,” he warned. Hours earlier, Albares himself summoned the Italian ambassador to Spain, Giuseppe Buccino Grimaldi, in response to remarks by Tajani in which he attributed the Ceuta migration crisis to “the Madrid government’s decision to grant Spanish, and therefore European, citizenship to more than 500,000 undocumented immigrants,” a “profoundly erroneous” decision that “encourages human trafficking.” The Extraordinary Regularization for Migrants, adopted by the government last April, does not include granting citizenship to its beneficiaries. In Albares’s opinion, “this message is unbecoming of the Foreign Minister of a partner and friend from whom we expect European solidarity, not partisan demagoguery.” Following Italy’s decision—adopted by Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi—which entails the reintroduction of controls at ports and airports for travel to and from Spain, the European Commission reminded Italy that any member state wishing to reinstate controls at the borders with another Schengen Area member state, must notify and justify its actions to the European institutions. This would involve explaining why the situation in Ceuta is considered a serious threat to Italy's internal security or public order. The measure is provided for under European regulations, but only "as a last resort" in the face of serious threats to public order or national security.

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