The Italian Government has said it will not withdraw the border checks it imposed on travellers arriving from Spain, rejecting a deadline set by Madrid and refusing to reconsider the measure before August 15.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s office said in a statement on August 7 that Italy “does not accept ultimatums or impositions from abroad” on national security and border control.
Palazzo Chigi said the suspension of Schengen rules for third-country nationals arriving from Spain would remain in place at least until August 15 and until security and terrorist risks to Italy were ruled out entirely.
Only once Rome was certain there would be no further wave of irregular arrivals heading for European territory could the decision be revisited, the statement said.
The Spanish Government had earlier given Italy until the end of August 9 to lift the checks, warning it would otherwise adopt “proportionate measures” to protect the interests and dignity of Spanish citizens.
Madrid argued that the decision taken on August 1 rested on grounds incompatible with the Schengen Borders Code and said the controls had disrupted thousands of passengers at the height of the summer season.
Spain has also stressed that Ceuta lies outside the Schengen area under a special regime, meaning none of those who reached the enclave could have travelled onward freely.
Italian interior minister Matteo Piantedosi said the suspension was a temporary measure permitted under EU treaties, adding that Rome would look again at its position after August 15.
He said the checks were selective and aimed at non-EU nationals and dismissed the Italian opposition’s reaction as overblown, suggesting a government led by socialists was treated as untouchable.
Spanish intelligence services had themselves judged credible an online appeal for a repeat mass crossing on August 15, Piantedosi said, making it difficult to argue that the grounds for the measure had disappeared.
Rome insisted the row did not damage its relationship with Spain and said it remained willing to pursue constructive dialogue with Madrid.
Italian border authorities would meanwhile do everything possible to ease passage for Spanish and other European citizens, who are not covered by the air and sea controls, the statement added.
Italy notified the European Commission of the checks on August 3 and said they would run until August 31, with the option of renewal. Home affairs commissioner Magnus Brunner has said the measure must be proportionate.
Some 72,000 migrants crossed from Morocco into Ceuta in late July, according to figures given by Spanish interior minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska. At least 75 people died attempting the crossing.
EU interior ministers agreed on August 4 to reinforce external borders and speed up returns, closing days of open recrimination between Madrid and its partners.
