Italy suspends EU Schengen free-travel pact with Spain over Ceuta crisis

Italy said on Friday it was suspending the EU’s border-free Schengen arrangements with Spain for one month in ⁠response to a mass influx ⁠of migrants into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from neighbouring Morocco.

Italy does not share a land border with Spain but the measure – which looks certain to anger Madrid – will ⁠impact people travelling by plane or boat between the two countries, meaning they will need to show a passport to gain access.

Italy’s interior ministry said in a statement it had also agreed with Paris to strengthen controls along the Franco-Italian land border to try to prevent any undocumented migrants from crossing.

Critics of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government dismissed the move as a symbolic gesture aimed at a domestic political audience, with no evidence that the migrants in Ceuta ⁠had ⁠any intention of heading to Italy.

The decision to halt the Schengen pact came after Spain said it had reversed the rush of migrants into its enclave in North Africa, with most of the more than 50,000 people who had crossed the border heading back voluntarily.

Meloni’s coalition, which came to power in 2022 promising to reduce illegal immigration, has faced strong pressure from a new far-right ⁠party led by former army general Roberto Vannacci, whose anti-migrant rhetoric has resonated with some voters.

With migration once again dominating headlines, the government has sought to demonstrate a tough stance on border security. Centre-left opponents accused it bowing to a populist agenda.

“The problem is that this is a purely demagogic proposal, as usual designed for domestic consumption and to ⁠compete ‌with Vannacci, without ‌solving anything at all,” said Piero De ⁠Luca, a senior lawmaker with the centre-left ‌Democratic Party.

The Schengen Area allows passport-free travel across 29 European countries, although member states can temporarily reintroduce border controls ⁠on security or public-order grounds.

The Italian interior ministry ⁠said border police would carry out “targeted, selective checks” on third-country nationals arriving ⁠from Spain to verify that they had the documents needed for travel within the European Union.