European socialists rule out joint resolution with the EPP on Ceuta and criticize Italy

The European socialists are not at all interested in passing a joint resolution with the European People's Party condemning the invasion of Ceuta. The president of the S&D, Iratxe García, came to assure yesterday that this possibility is practically ruled out. And although the negotiations are going to continue until tomorrow's vote, his words are another example of how very willing the group to which the PSOE belongs is to put all possible difficulties to this pronouncement of the European Parliament.

For this reason, it is very likely that the European People's Party (EPP) will have to look for other partners among the liberals or the extreme right to carry out its own resolution, which clearly demands that "the Moroccan authorities assume their responsibilities as a key partner of the European Union and that they fulfill their commitments in terms of border management, return and migratory cooperation", although a complete break in relations is not supported. Or that the pronouncement may even be delayed due to the impossibility of reaching a sufficiently broad agreement, something that some parliamentary sources did not rule out yesterday afternoon. May the plenary session, therefore, end without any sign of support for Ceuta.

That would be great news for the S&D because there would be no hint of criticism towards Morocco from the European Parliament. In the resolution that the party proposed yesterday, the Moroccan country is barely mentioned. What's more, more space is dedicated to criticizing Giorgia Meloni and "Italy's decision to immediately introduce controls on the internal borders with Spain as of August 1 following the events in Ceuta, despite the fact that those who had arrived irregularly could not continue their journey to Spain or another Schengen State."

The European socialists, in addition, echo the arguments of Pedro Sánchez's Executive. And these, in turn, are also the same ones that the Moroccan Government itself sent on Monday, just before the debate on Ceuta, to a group of MEPs by email. "In light of the unfortunate events of July 30, 2026, the Moroccan authorities are working to determine the causes and actors behind this situation," says the six-point document that was revealed by the PNV MEP, Oihane Agirregoitia, and that other parliamentarians from Renew and the socialist group also received, but not those from the Popular Party or Vox.

The text also highlights "the obvious role played by misinformation spread through social networks", the Spanish Executive's own argument. It also points out that "Morocco has committed to readmit all affected people, including Moroccan citizens, unaccompanied minors and third-country nationals", and that "the Spanish Government has publicly declared that the information at its disposal does not allow Morocco to be held responsible for these events."