Ceuta Crisis Eases as EU Assists Spain with Border Security

European Union interior ministers have reached an agreement to strengthen the security of the bloc’s external borders following a video conference on Tuesday (04/08). The agreement was announced in an official statement.

“There is a shared understanding of the need for tireless efforts to continue combating migrant smuggling networks, increase returns, reinforce the European Union’s borders, build close partnerships with third countries, and improve anticipation measures,” they wrote in a press release.

The ministers also “highlighted that communication during crises can be improved through rapid and more integrated coordination, in particular to counter external actors involved in manipulation and foreign information interference.”

The bloc agreed to provide emergency assistance to Spain to support the strengthening of border security.

What happened in Ceuta?

The meeting was held to address concerns about security within the Schengen free-movement area after around 60,000 people stormed the border gates of Ceuta, a Spanish exclave — a territory of one state separated from it and surrounded by the territory of another country.

Various European non-governmental organisations (NGOs) said there were hundreds of minors among those who broke through.

The incident sparked a series of sharp criticisms from centre-right and right-wing leaders of EU member states directed at Spain’s left-wing Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez. Countries such as Italy and Finland called for Spain’s membership of the Schengen agreement to be suspended immediately.

However, officials and law enforcement agencies from across the EU said the breach of border controls was caused by misinformation given to asylum seekers waiting at the border. The authorities also voiced suspicions that human trafficking syndicates had deliberately misled the prospective migrants.

The Spanish exclave of Ceuta is located on the African continent, bordering Morocco directly on one side and the sea on the other. The territory applies stricter-than-usual Schengen entry and exit procedures, and carries out identity checks on passengers crossing to the Spanish mainland.

Spain confirmed on Tuesday (04/08) that around 60,000 people had been returned to Morocco since the weekend, leaving 2,500 people still in Ceuta.

The Schengen area not disrupted

“It is very clear that the Schengen area has not been disrupted at all by this crisis,” said Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, after holding talks with his counterparts from other EU member states.

The statement was endorsed by French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez: “We all agree that the Schengen area is not really the main issue.”

European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner said there was “full solidarity with Spain at the negotiating table” at the meeting. He added that the increased border security facilitated by Frontex (the EU’s border agency) had been deployed in Ceuta and was “ready to do more”.

He described the meeting as a “valuable opportunity” to ensure that no one crosses from Ceuta to the Spanish mainland.

“The past few days have been a test of European resilience, a test of the security of our external borders,” Brunner said. “In my view, Europe has clearly passed this test.”