Finnish Interior Minister Mari Rantanen stated that Spain is failing to protect the European Union’s external border and therefore should not remain a member of the Schengen Area. In a post on social media platform X, she emphasized that “all European countries should support Meloni’s proposal,” adding that states that fail to fulfill their obligations to protect external borders “cannot be members of the Schengen Area.”
However, these statements were met with objections almost immediately. Former EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell pointed out that current EU legislation does not provide for the possibility of one country unilaterally excluding another state from the Schengen Area. The most the rules allow is the temporary reinstatement of border controls at internal borders in the event of a serious threat to public safety or internal order.
The political conflict was triggered by an unprecedented situation in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa. According to Spanish media reports, nearly 50,000 undocumented migrants from Morocco stormed into the city. El Confidencial reports that at least 24 people died during the mass breach. Spanish authorities deployed army units to Ceuta to regain control of the situation.
The sharp increase in the flow of migrants followed a ruling by the Spanish Supreme Court, which in early July ruled that migrants detained at sea could not be returned to Morocco under a simplified procedure. According to the Spanish Ministry of the Interior, human-trafficking networks exploited this ruling to encourage mass attempts to cross the border. As early as July 31, Madrid and Rabat agreed to expedite the deportation process for illegal migrants, and Spanish authorities reported that the flow of people had begun to decline and that many were returning to Morocco.
Against the backdrop of the crisis, relations between Madrid and Rome have noticeably deteriorated. Following statements by Giorgia Meloni, the Spanish Foreign Ministry summoned the Italian ambassador, and Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares called Italy’s position unworthy of a partner country in the European Union.
The Schengen Area comprises 29 European countries that share a regime of free movement. At the same time, EU legislation allows member states to temporarily reinstate controls at internal borders in exceptional cases, but does not provide for a mechanism to unilaterally exclude a member state from the Schengen Area.
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