ROME: Madrid on Thursday blasted Italy's "demagoguery" for calling for its exit from the Schengen zone after hordes of migrants arrived from Morocco in the Spanish exclave of Ceuta.
It also summoned Italy's ambassador to Madrid to lodge a protest.
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said earlier Thursday he was "in favour of closing the Schengen area with Spain", claiming "Irregular and uncontrolled immigration poses a danger to national security."
"The images coming from Ceuta show how the Madrid government's decision to grant Spanish, and therefore European, citizenship to over 500,000 irregular immigrants is profoundly wrong and encourages human trafficking," he argued.
Sono favorevole alla chiusura dello spazio Schengen con la Spagna e ho piena fiducia nell’operato del Ministro Piantedosi. L’immigrazione irregolare e incontrollata rappresenta un pericolo per la sicurezza nazionale. Le immagini che arrivano da Ceuta dimostrano come la scelta del…
— Antonio Tajani (@Antonio_Tajani) July 30, 2026
The message from the Italian foreign minister "is improper" for "a partner and friendly country from which we expect European solidarity and not partisan demagoguery", Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Luis Albares said.
The Schengen Area is a system of open borders that encompass 29 European countries that have officially abolished frontier controls at their common borders.
