Spain to Impose Border Controls on Travellers from Italy Amid Migration Dispute

Cyprus Inform

Spanish police.

Spain's government said on Friday that it would introduce border controls on passengers arriving from Italy by air and sea from midnight on Saturday until 7 September, escalating a dispute with Rome over irregular migration.

The measures will require passport, nationality and visa checks for Italian passengers and travellers from other countries arriving from Italy, which Madrid said were necessary due to "persistent irregular migratory pressure".

Spain said the controls would remain in place for as long as Italy maintained its own restrictions, which Rome introduced following a mass influx of around 72,000 migrants into Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta on 30 July.

Earlier on Friday, Italy said it would not submit to "ultimatums or impositions" from Spain and would maintain its border controls on arrivals from Spain until at least 15 August.

Spain had warned earlier in the day that it would introduce reciprocal measures unless Italy lifted its restrictions by Sunday. Rome imposed the controls last week following a large influx of migrants from Morocco into Ceuta.

In a statement, the Italian government said it would reconsider the measures only after establishing that there was no risk to security or terrorism, that another major migration wave was unlikely and that irregular migrants were not heading towards European territory.

Source: Reuters



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