The groundwork for Tuesday’s meeting was set on Monday when EU ambassadors held talks that lasted around two and a half hours. The Spanish envoy gave Madrid’s account of the Ceuta crisis, during which more than 70 people died, and reprimanded some capitals for spreading disinformation, according to one of the diplomats. The ambassador was asked for verification of Madrid’s figures on returned migrants and for the situation to be closely monitored, two other diplomats said.
Concerns were also raised that Spanish government policies may have been used by people-smugglers and gangs to encourage the events in Ceuta.
“There’s a concern that … the legalization of a million irregular migrants, that it’s been possible [for people-smugglers] to use that to give the impression that the door was open,” said one diplomat from a country that has been critical of Spain.
But the Spanish ambassador criticized Italy for amplifying false claims about the migrant regularization program, such as Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani’s suggestion on social media that it automatically grants EU citizenship. The program provides legal residency to eligible migrants but does not confer Spanish nationality.
Rallying to support Spain
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen set the tone of conciliation on Monday by writing to Sánchez to praise Spain and Morocco for their handling of the crisis and calling for a united European response. She said the episode showed the need for stronger controls at the EU’s external borders, closer cooperation with partner countries, better early-warning systems, action against smuggling networks and more effective returns.
The interior ministers are expected to seek further rapprochement. Tuesday’s discussion will focus on lessons learned from Ceuta, ways to beef up controls at the bloc’s external borders and how to respond to potential future episodes of instrumentalized migration, rather than assigning blame for the crisis, three of the diplomats said.