# Italy Suspends Its Schengen Arrangements With Spain for a Month

> Rome closed its sea and air entry points to Spain after the arrival of tens of thousands of migrants in Ceuta, while insisting that travel for Spanish and other European citizens is unaffected.

- Source: Italian Insider
- Canonical URL: https://italianinsider.net/en/article/italy-suspends-schengen-spain-ceuta
- Author: Elena Moretti
- Section: World
- Other edition: https://italianinsider.net/article/italy-suspends-schengen-spain-ceuta
- Published: 2026-08-01T08:03:17.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-01T08:03:17.000Z
- Tags: Schengen, Spain, Ceuta, Migration

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Italy said on Friday that it had suspended its Schengen arrangements with Spain for one month, following the influx of migrants into Ceuta, the Spanish enclave in North Africa that borders Morocco. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called it an extraordinary measure intended to safeguard national security and prevent possible repercussions for the country.

The interior ministry confirmed to AFP that Italy had closed its maritime and air entry points to Spain, while cautioning that the measure would not affect travel to Italy for Spanish and other European citizens. A spokesman also said that, after discussions with France, the two countries would reinforce the land border controls already in place.

The day before, Meloni had called for Spain to be suspended from the Schengen area outright, describing the images of thousands of arrivals in Ceuta as shocking.

The distance between those two positions is the story. Suspending the agreement with a single member state for a month is a national decision Italy can take on its own. Suspending Spain from Schengen is not: it would require the other members to agree, and the treaties provide no procedure for expelling anybody. The first is a message the second cannot deliver.

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Originally published by Italian Insider. Free to cite with attribution and a link to https://italianinsider.net/en/article/italy-suspends-schengen-spain-ceuta.