Spain and Italy extend border checks as diplomatic row over Ceuta deepens

The latest extension means checks will continue at airports and ports handling direct connections between the two countries, despite both Spain and Italy being members of the Schengen free-movement area. ALSO READ: Italy and Spain extend tit-for-tat border controls for another 15 days over Ceuta migrant crisis.

Italy announced on Tuesday that it would maintain its controls on travellers arriving by air and sea from Spain, after a review by its Committee for Immigration and Border Security Analysis.

Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi informed the European Commission and his EU counterparts of the decision.

Rome said the extension remained ‘necessary’, arguing that ‘high risks to internal security persist, alongside a possible threat of terrorist infiltration’.

Spain responded by extending its own controls on arrivals from Italy for another 15 days. The Spanish Interior Ministry said the restrictions would now remain in force until 8 October, although they could be lifted earlier if circumstances change.

The ministry said that ‘the circumstances that led to the adoption of this measure remain’, adding that any change in those circumstances could result in the planned timetable being revised.

Controls introduced after Ceuta crisis

The dispute dates back to the end of July, when over 72,000 migrants crossed into the Spanish autonomous city of Ceuta from neighbouring Morocco. ALSO READ: Spanish court to investigate deadly Ceuta migrant surge as possible ‘hybrid warfare’ operation.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced on 31 July that Italy would temporarily reintroduce controls on air and sea arrivals from Spain, describing the move as an ‘extraordinary measure’ intended to ‘safeguard national security and prevent possible repercussions’ for Italy.

The restrictions took effect from 1 August and initially targeted non-EU nationals travelling from Spain by air or sea. Meloni said they would remain in place only for as long as necessary, while seeking to minimise disruption to summer tourism.

Spain strongly criticised the Italian decision and, on 8 August, introduced reciprocal controls on passengers arriving from Italy. ALSO READ: Spain imposes reciprocal border checks on Italy as Schengen dispute escalates.

Unlike conventional border restrictions between neighbouring countries, the measures do not affect a land frontier because Spain and Italy do not share one. They instead apply at ports and airports serving direct connections between the two countries.

The Schengen area currently comprises 29 European countries which have generally abolished controls at their internal borders, although member states can temporarily reintroduce checks under certain circumstances.

Albares calls Italian decision ‘absurd’ and ‘a disgrace’

The latest Italian extension prompted an unusually sharp response from Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, who described Rome’s decision as ‘absurd, useless and a disgrace’.

He accused Italy of undermining the principle of free movement at the heart of the Schengen system.

‘There is no risk to the integrity or threat to the integrity of the Schengen area from Ceuta and Melilla, and the Italian government knows that,’ Albares said.

He also accused Meloni and Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani of behaving more as party political leaders than European leaders ‘up to the circumstances’.

Albares called on Spain’s right-wing People’s Party (PP) and far-right Vox group to use their political links with the governing parties in Italy to press Rome to reverse its position.

He argued that Italy is currently recording twice as many irregular migrant arrivals as Spain and recalled that Madrid offered assistance during the migration crisis on the Italian island of Lampedusa in 2023, including accepting migrants transferred from Italy.

According to Albares, the Italian government’s approach was being driven by domestic politics and represented ‘a direct attack on the dignity of Spaniards and the unity and solidarity of Europeans’.

‘Europe cannot exist without solidarity,’ he said.

Italy rejects Spanish criticism

Rome has rejected the Spanish criticism, insisting that its decision is based on security rather than hostility towards Spain.

Tajani said Italy was applying European rules and treaties ‘with the sole aim of defending the security of its borders and its citizens’.

He described the Spanish government’s response to the latest extension as ‘misplaced, inappropriate and unnecessarily aggressive’.

Speaking separately on Tuesday, Tajani insisted that the controls were ‘not an attitude directed against anyone, nor is it a political stance’.

‘Our priority is ensuring internal and border security,’ he said, arguing that the measure remained justified while the situation in Ceuta continued.

The reciprocal controls have now been extended several times since they were first introduced in August, with both governments notifying the European Commission of their decisions.