EU Commission President seeks to ease Spain-EU tensions over Ceuta migration crisis

BRUSSELS — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen sought to smooth over tensions with Spain after Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez accused many of his fellow EU leaders of exploiting the migration crisis in Ceuta to attack his government.

In a letter sent to Sánchez on Monday, von der Leyen praised Spain’s handling of the influx of migrants from Morocco into its North African exclave. Her response came after Sánchez wrote to her over the weekend, condemning leaders who “have chosen to attack Spain and to call for its temporary exclusion from the Schengen Area.”

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday was the first to propose Spain be suspended from the 29-country Schengen zone in which internal border controls have largely been abolished. Italy and France both imposed restrictions on free movement last week.

Around 50,000 people crossed into Ceuta from Morocco last week, with dozens dying in the attempt. Almost all those who entered have since returned to Morocco.

Von der Leyen on Monday praised the “swift handling” of returns by Spanish and Moroccan authorities, saying they had “successfully prevent[ed] illegal movement onwards to mainland Spain and Europe.”

The exchange followed a joint letter from 22 EU leaders at the weekend calling for an emergency meeting of interior ministers and a tougher, coordinated response to the crisis. That meeting will take place on Tuesday, with EU ambassadors discussing the situation on Monday afternoon.

The intervention by EU leaders opened a new political fight over Spain’s migration policy, including Madrid’s plan to regularize more than 1 million undocumented migrants. Some governments argued that the measure created a “pull factor” by encouraging people to believe that irregular entry could eventually lead to legal residency.

Sánchez rejected that criticism in his letter, accusing some EU countries of responding in a “selfish,” “polarizing” and unlawful manner. He argued that Spain needed European solidarity rather than blame after the deaths and the strain placed on Ceuta’s authorities. The Spanish government refused to comment for this article.

Von der Leyen’s letter offered that solidarity while making clear that the crisis would also have to prompt stronger EU action.

“Migration is a European challenge that requires a European response,” she wrote. “And in this, solidarity is fundamental.” The Commission, she said, had offered Spain financial and operational support, with Frontex, Europol and the EU asylum agency ready to assist.

Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner on Friday told Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska that the bloc was willing to “increase support for Spain” to “control the situation,” and to deploy members of Frontex, the EU agency that supports member countries in monitoring and managing the EU’s external borders, to Ceuta.

Frontex currently has staff deployed in Ceuta, as well as on the Canary Islands and parts of the Andalusian coastline.

Madrid has repeatedly declined to request that the agency’s presence in Spain be increased, insisting that border control falls under the jurisdiction of national authorities. Following a surge in migrant arrivals to Ceuta in 2021, and an increase in arrivals to the Canary Islands in 2024, Spain’s interior ministry rejected calls to ask for Frontex’s support, insisting it had sufficient resources to manage the situation.

‘We must do more’

Von der Leyen said the incident had exposed weaknesses in the bloc’s border management. “It is clear that we must do more to further strengthen our borders at critical points,” the Commission president wrote, including through “vigilant monitoring and the use of physical barriers where needed.”

She outlined five priorities: preventing irregular migration through stronger cooperation with partner countries, reinforcing the EU’s external borders, establishing early-warning systems, dismantling smuggling networks, and improving returns.

Morocco, she said, remained an “important strategic partner” in combating migrant smuggling and irregular migration. The EU should work with Rabat and Madrid to improve early-warning systems around Ceuta and Melilla, as well as technical and financial support for Morocco, she said.

Von der Leyen also endorsed the emergency meeting of the EU’s justice and home affairs ministers on Tuesday, describing it as a first step toward a collective response. The ministers should agree on a way forward before EU leaders assess the measures at their next European Council meeting, she said.

“Spain and its people can count on the enduring support of the Commission,” von der Leyen concluded.