Italy has rejected a Spanish demand to lift temporary border restrictions introduced after last week’s mass migrant influx into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, deepening a diplomatic dispute between the two European Union countries.
Spain warned on Friday that it could impose reciprocal restrictions on travellers from Italy unless Rome removes the measures by Sunday.
The Italian government responded that it would not accept “ultimatums or impositions” from Madrid and said its partial suspension of Schengen rules for non-EU nationals arriving from Spain would remain in place until at least August 15.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government had initially indicated that the enhanced checks could continue until the end of August.
Madrid described the Italian measures as unjustified, discriminatory and contrary to the interests of the European Union, saying it would adopt “proportionate measures” if Rome failed to reverse course.
Meloni’s office defended the restrictions, pointing to warnings from Spanish authorities about calls for another attempted mass crossing into Ceuta on August 15.
Italy said it would reconsider the controls only when it was satisfied that there was no risk of another large migration wave, no associated security or terrorism threat and no prospect of irregular migrants moving onward towards other European countries.
Spain’s Civil Guard has confirmed that it is monitoring online calls for another attempt to cross into Ceuta on August 15, although authorities have not said how many people could take part.
Last week, as many as 72,000 migrants attempted to enter Ceuta from neighbouring Morocco in an unprecedented surge that left dozens dead.
Most of those who crossed have since returned to Morocco, although hundreds of unaccompanied minors remain in the Spanish territory.
Italy, which does not share a land border with Spain, said the controls were intended to prevent migrants who entered Ceuta irregularly from travelling onwards to Italian territory.
Spanish authorities have questioned that justification, saying there is no evidence that migrants in Ceuta are attempting to reach Italy and arguing that those who entered irregularly cannot freely access the wider Schengen zone.
Madrid accused Rome of relying on “spurious arguments” that had no factual basis.
The dispute has exposed sharp differences between Meloni and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez over European migration policy.
Meloni has become one of the continent’s most prominent advocates of tougher immigration controls, while Sanchez’s Socialist government has generally supported a more permissive approach and recently backed a large-scale regularisation programme for undocumented migrants.
Spain’s Youth Minister Sira Rego accused Meloni’s government of taking an unreasonable position.
“The impression is that Ms Meloni is on a crusade,” Rego told Spanish public broadcaster TVE1.
Madrid also noted that Italy has recorded more irregular migrant arrivals than Spain in recent years, arguing that Italian figures have at times been roughly twice as high.
The escalating row raises the prospect of reciprocal travel restrictions between two major Schengen members if no agreement is reached before Spain’s Sunday deadline.