Spain commenced border checks for travelers arriving from Italy on Saturday, a retaliatory measure following similar protocols established by Rome after an unprecedented surge of migrants into the Spanish North African enclave of Ceuta.
“I don’t see a lot of ‘diplomacy’ used in these decisions, neither by the Italian government nor the Spanish government,” remarked Maria Celeste Grillo, a 36-year-old Italian tourist who recently arrived in Madrid.
While she noted that she did not encounter additional security measures upon landing, she described the implementation of such policies as “sad.”
Spain announced on Friday its decision to proceed with heightened controls, citing the “persistent irregular migration pressure” currently affecting Italy, a move that further intensifies the dispute between the two EU and NATO allies.
Spain’s left-wing administration has criticized Italy’s hard-right government for its July 31 decision to impose a one-month border check on Spanish travelers. This move effectively suspended the visa-free travel privileges provided under the EU’s Schengen Area agreement in response to the Ceuta influx.
On July 30 and 31, more than 70,000 migrants crossed from Morocco into the Ceuta enclave, though nearly all of them returned to Morocco within 48 hours.
This influx has caused alarm across Europe, particularly among right-wing factions advocating for stricter regulations on irregular migration. However, current protocols for Ceuta dictate that migrants cannot move toward continental Europe without undergoing additional layers of border inspections.
The Spanish interior ministry stated that the new inspections for travelers arriving from Italy will remain in effect until September 7.
