Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Monday, 3 August said that Italy had failed to meet expectations in responding to the Ceuta migration crisis, pointedly noting that Italy currently records the highest number of irregular migrant entries in Europe — while Spain registers the lowest. Albares made the remarks in an interview with broadcaster RTVE, as EU interior ministers prepared to convene on Tuesday to address the situation.

Albares Targets Italy and Domestic Opposition

'There have been countries and governments that have not lived up to expectations, as well as politicians and parties, even in Spain,' Albares said. 'The Italian government was one of them. Here in Spain, I hear irresponsible statements from the Popular Party and Vox,' he added.

He drew a direct comparison between the two countries' migration pressures, arguing that Italy — which faces sustained arrivals at Lampedusa — would, in his view, welcome a resolution similar to the one achieved at Ceuta. The remark was widely seen as a rebuke of Italian criticism of Spain's handling of the crisis.

Scale of the Ceuta Crossing and Morocco's Role

According to Albares, the crisis unfolded between last Thursday and Friday, when at least 50,000 people from Morocco arrived irregularly at the autonomous city of Ceuta — by swimming across the border — in what he described as an 'unprecedented event.' He was equally emphatic about what followed: the repatriation of the vast majority of those individuals within 48 hours, achieved with the 'full collaboration' of Morocco.

'The vast majority of those who entered have already returned to Morocco, and we continue to offer our collaboration so that even the last person who entered can return,' Albares said in a separate interview with the programme 'La Hora de la 1'.

Morocco Described as a Reliable Partner

Asked directly whether Morocco was a dependable partner, Albares was unequivocal. 'I stick to the facts. And the facts are that, from the very first moment, Morocco offered its collaboration to try to stop that flow of people and, above all, for them to return immediately,' he said.

He also underscored Morocco's 'collaborative attitude from the outset,' framing the bilateral response as a model for managing the border.

Call for EU Solidarity Ahead of Interior Ministers' Meeting

Albares argued that Ceuta and Melilla — Spain's two autonomous cities on the African continent — occupy a unique position as the only external land border of the European Union (EU) with Africa. He called on all EU member states to recognise this distinction and rally around a solidarity framework, with the Interior Ministers' meeting on Tuesday providing an immediate test of European cohesion.

'Strengthen these mechanisms and remind all EU states that without solidarity, there is no Europe,' he emphasised, urging Brussels to treat the two cities differently from other European border cities. With the EU's migration architecture under renewed strain, how member states respond to Spain's call for burden-sharing will shape the bloc's approach to the Mediterranean frontier in the months ahead.