EU ministers to meet on Tuesday to discuss Ceuta fallout

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has accused several EU governments of acting out of "prejudice" and undermining European solidarity after they called for internal Schengen border controls in response to the mass arrival of migrants in Ceuta.

EU interior ministers will hold an emergency videoconference on Tuesday, convened by Ireland, which is currently holding the rotating Council presidency, to coordinate the bloc's response as the dispute between Madrid and several capitals deepens.

In a letter sent on Saturday to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa and Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin, Sánchez expressed his "serious concern" over the reaction of some European capitals.

Italy, Denmark and Finland were among the nations asking to impose internal borders after more than 50,000 migrants entered from Morocco into the Spanish overseas enclave of Ceuta, on the North African coast, between Thursday and Friday. Italy then went ahead and did so on Friday.

The Spanish leader said the response from some European capitals was "driven by prejudice, fake news, ignorance, or political interest… contrary to European law, humanitarian law, and the principles of solidarity that bind us together."

Sánchez insisted Spain had already brought the situation under control.

"In less than 48 hours, my Government has succeeded in fully restoring control over the border, in providing extensive humanitarian assistance, in returning virtually all of the migrants who crossed irregularly, and in preventing any unauthorised onward movement towards continental Europe."

Data released by the Spanish Interior Ministry on Friday revealed that nearly 48,300 people voluntarily returned to Morocco, largely due to severe food and water shortages caused by widespread business closures amid fears of looting and rioting.

Also on Saturday, Italy's Giorgia Meloni and Denmark's Mette Frederiksen penned a letter to the EU leadership, writing that a recent ruling by the Spanish Supreme Court has "been used to trigger this attack and abuse our migration and asylum system."

"We cannot allow uncontrolled mass crossings, the instrumentalisation of migration or other hybrid threats to create the perception that illegal entry into the European Union is possible. That a migrant's illegal entry can turn into legal stay," the pair wrote.

The letter was also backed by 20 other leaders of EU countries, including Germany's Friedrich Merz, Belgium's Bart De Wever, and Poland's Donald Tusk.

While the leaders acknowledged that no migrants had left Ceuta to reach the rest of the EU, they said they are ready to bolster the EU's internal borders and introduce temporary controls there to "safeguard public order."

The leaders also criticised Sánchez's move to regularise hundreds of thousands of migrants in Spain, describing it as a pull factor.

Von der Leyen said she received the letter, and appeared to agree with its tone, writing in a social media post that "we need a lessons learned process to improve our European resilience."

She also appeared to defend the European Commission's attitude to Spain during the crisis, stating: "The Commission has offered support to Spain from the first moment."

Bar Ireland, and Spain, the only countries that didn't sign the leaders' letter were France, Portugal, and Luxembourg.

In his letter, Sánchez said the online ministers' meeting should "reaffirm that the security of our external borders is a shared responsibility of all Member States, and not only of those on the Union's front line."

But the 22 leaders, in their letter, wrote that the meeting was needed to consider strengthening support from EU border agency Frontex – something Spain has not requested – and consider the "effectiveness of EU cooperation with Morocco."

While Madrid and Rabat officially blamed human trafficking networks for the crisis, Spanish experts accuse Morocco of intentionally allowing thousands to storm the border. Local media reported 67 deaths.

Despite this, Sánchez praised "close coordination" with Rabat, noting a lack of support from European allies.

Ceuta – Europe's only land border with Africa – is not part of the Schengen area and maintains its own border and security checks, the premier noted.

"In the current international context, the European Union cannot afford this kind of selfish, polarising and unlawful reaction," he said.