Europe was severely tested by the recent mass arrival of migrants in the Spanish territory of Ceuta, in North Africa, the EU's Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner conceded on Tuesday.
At an emergency meeting of EU interior ministers, Spain's Fernando Grande-Marlaska said the situation was under control and that no migrant had crossed the border to mainland Spain.
Madrid has faced a political backlash over the crisis, with 22 EU states signing a letter accusing it of encouraging migration with the mass legalisation of undocumented migrants.
“For the time being, Europe, I think, has definitely passed this test,” Mr Brunner said at a press conference in Brussels. “People did not manage to enter the Schengen area, and security at the border was resolved quickly.”
Between 3,000 and 5,000 migrants remain in Ceuta after 69,500 returned to Morocco on foot, having crossed into the enclave on Thursday. Some swam over the border, while others crossed on foot. Seventy-five people died while attempting the crossing.
Interference
The cause of the surge remains unclear, but Spain and Morocco have blamed social media manipulation. “We know there was interference from smugglers and human traffickers,” Mr Brunner said. Europol is co-operating with Spanish authorities to uncover the cause.
Accusations have linked the Ceuta mass arrival to Spain's decision to legalise the status of about 500,000 undocumented migrants. Mr Brunner rebuffed this, adding “we can’t see a direct link at the moment between regularisations and the incidents in Ceuta”.
But he added that such periodic amnesties in general were “not a good signal”.
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Troops escort migrants on Spain's enclave of Ceuta, situated on the northern shores of Morocco's Mediterranean coast. Reuters -
Authorities said about 50,000 people crossed into Ceuta by land and sea from July 30, in an unprecedented surge. Reuters -
Spanish soldiers question a migrant. Reuters -
The mass crossing prompted concern across the EU, and 22 member states wrote a letter asking for co-ordinated action to protect external borders and other measures. Reuters -
Locals rally against a far-right protest, organised by Nucleo Nacional and other far-right collectives, in Ceuta. Getty Images -
Spanish security personnel in Ceuta escort migrants to the border with Morocco, after thousands crossed into the enclave. Reuters -
Migrants are led to the border between Spanish territory and Morocco. Reuters -
Spanish soldiers help an injured migrant on a beach. Reuters -
Migrants prepare to jump into the Spanish territory of Melilla from the Moroccan side of the border fence. EPA -
A Spanish Guardia Civil boat off the coast of Ceuta. Reuters -
A boy crosses back to Morocco through a fence next to Spanish military personnel. Reuters -
Migrants walk back to Morocco from Ceuta. Reuters -
People gather on a hill near Fnideq, in Morocco, as thousands of migrants cross the border into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. AFP -
Spanish soldiers at the Tarajal border crossing in Ceuta after violent clashes along the perimeter. EPA -
People gather along the border fence near Fnideq. AFP -
Thousands of migrants crossed overnight by land and sea. AFP -
People gather next to an overturned police vehicle at the site of clashes near Fnideq. AFP -
Migrants arrive in Spanish territory in North Africa after swimming across the Ceuta border from Morocco. Reuters -
Migrants clamber on to rocks near the border fence in Ceuta. Reuters -
Migrants travel along the coast on foot as they attempt to cross into the North African enclave from Morocco. Reuters -
A member of Spain's Civil Guard keeps watch as migrants enter Ceuta. Reuters
“I do understand that Spain did it because it's mainly about Latin Americans speaking the same language, having the same culture, but the signal for the rest of Europe is not a good one,” he said.
Mr Brunner said he also understood that images from Ceuta had caused concern among Europeans. Italy reintroduced border checks, saying it feared the migrants in Ceuta would travel on to mainland Europe. It is up to Spain to ensure that the remaining migrants in Ceuta do not cross into the EU, Mr Brunner said.
Mr Grande-Marlaska said at a separate press conference that “those not entitled to stay will be expelled in strict compliance with Spanish and international law, always with respect for human rights and freedoms”.
Schengen countries, which include the non-EU member states Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, as well as the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, the EU Asylum Agency and Europol, joined Tuesday's meeting with interior ministers, which took place online.
Spanish government officials have emphasised that there was no need for Italy to suspend Schengen because no migrants would be able to travel from Ceuta to mainland Spain. Ceuta is outside the Schengen area. Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares summoned the Italian ambassador and criticised Rome's handling of mass migrant arrivals in Lampedusa.
'Pull factor'
Italy and Denmark rallied 22 EU states to write a letter on Saturday to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. They singled out Spain's migration policies, describing them as a “pull factor”.
“We cannot allow uncontrolled mass crossings, the instrumentalisation of migration or other hybrid threats to create the perception that illegal entry into the European Union is possible,” they said in the letter.
France was among the handful of states that refused to sign. Diplomatic sources told The National the letter “offered no concrete solidarity to Spain and aimed above all to exploit the surge of migrants in Ceuta against the Spanish government”. They also said the letter “deliberately ignored” the fact that Ceuta is not part of Schengen.
In a separate letter to Ms von der Leyen, Mr Sanchez criticised European ministers who he said had “chosen to attack Spain”.
In her response on Monday, Ms von der Leyen was reported to have sought to ease tensions and praised Spain's response to the incident. She also stressed that “we must do more to further strengthen our borders at critical points”, including through “vigilant monitoring and the use of physical barriers where needed”, media reports said.
The incident has led to a renewed push of anti-migration measures, with Italy calling for the establishment of so-called migrant hubs in Africa and Eastern Europe. A migrant centre in Albania remains largely unused because of judicial issues.
Greece has advocated for the right to suspend asylum requests – a national measure introduced in July after a surge in arrivals in the southern islands of Crete and Gavdos.
Statistics show that illegal arrivals to Europe declined by 55 per cent last year. Just over 49,000 people have crossed into Europe illegally so far in 2026, which is the same number of people who arrived on Greek islands in one week at the height of the migration crisis in 2015. “Dramatic images beat the best statistics,” Mr Brunner said.
Among the options put forward by the Commission to respond to the Ceuta crisis are faster procedures under new migration rules and swifter returns.
