The Diplomat
The Government delegate in Ceuta, Salvadora Mateos, said yesterday that Spain’s bilateral relations with Morocco are once again “very good” and that the consequences of the change of leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be seen “in the next few days”.
Mateos was pleased during a press conference that communication between Madrid and Rabat is once again “fluid”, reports Europa Press.
“There was a crisis, the causes of which are well known and need not be repeated, but there has been a change in the Ministry [of Foreign Affairs following the replacement of Arancha González Laya by José Manuel Albares] and relations have resumed, which had been at a bit of a standstill, but now they are very good and you will see that in the next few days”, he said.
Last week, Albares insisted that it was necessary to apply prudence and discretion in order to restore relations with the Maghreb country.
The government delegate in Ceuta did not specify whether this new relationship would result in the immediate return of the more than 1,000 adult nationals from the neighbouring country who have remained in the city irregularly since mid-May, or also of the 800 or so unaccompanied migrant children and adolescents who have been taken in, as she “trusts” will happen.
Since 19 May, when the migratory avalanche that allowed some 12,000 Moroccans to enter Ceuta for 72 hours with the permissiveness of the neighbouring country’s security forces ended, a total of 3,474 Moroccans from the Alaouite Kingdom have returned voluntarily and 124 have been sent back. In addition, 1,230 have applied for international protection in Spain and 260 have already been able to cross the Strait of Gibraltar after having their applications accepted for processing.
