Italy sees Sánchez's reaction to its border controls as "disproportionate"

BarcelonaTension remains high between Italy and Spain over the Ceuta migratory crisis. The Italian government has denounced Spain's decision to impose border controls at ports and airports on passengers arriving from Italy as "totally unacceptable" and "incomprehensible." This was stated this Sunday in an interview with the newspaper La Stampa by the Italian Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani. The former President of the Eurochamber criticized Pedro Sánchez for making the decision "solely as retaliation, without reason, harming tourism".

The Spanish government's decision came after Italy decided to re-establish border controls for travelers coming from Spain following the massive influx of migrants into Ceuta, with the aim of preventing possible secondary movements towards Italian territory. The measure was published this Sunday in the BOE.

The Italian leader assures that his government wants to reopen Schengen "soon", but recalls that there are rumors of a new arrival of migrants at the Ceuta border on August 15th and that, therefore, they will only do so "when the dangerous situation ends". "We are not acting against Spain, but we have a duty to protect our borders." In the interview, Tajani accuses Spain of not having "monitored as it should have" the situation at the Ceuta border, and criticizes the extraordinary regularization process for immigrants because he believes it has caused a pull effect.

The Spanish government's reaction was swift. The third Vice-President and Minister for Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesen, expects Italy to "react" and acknowledge that the Schengen area "has not been violated at any time and is fully guaranteed." "In this regard, we can say that no person who has entered Ceuta irregularly has crossed and arrived on the peninsula," Aagesen wanted to make clear this Sunday, in statements made during her visit to the command center of the Niebla fire, in Huelva.

In parallel, the third Vice-President justified the temporary re-establishment of border controls with Italy with the desire to "defend the dignity of Spanish citizens." According to Agesen, the measure seeks to make the transalpine country "react" and end the same border controls in relation to Spain.

Vox makes a move

The external clash with Italy also has internal repercussions. Vox, an ally of Brothers of Italy, the party of Italian President Giorgia Meloni, has also made a move. The president of Vox, Santiago Abascal, announced this Saturday that his party will promote the activation of the mechanism provided for in Article 102 of the Constitution to investigate the Spanish president, Pedro Sánchez, and the members of his government, for the "very serious facts" related to the Ceuta migratory crisis, considering that there are indications that "justify a judicial investigation for possible crimes of treason and against state security".

Vox wants to take Sánchez to court, specifically to the Supreme Court, which would be the one to determine if he has committed the crimes imputed to him. The far-right party considers that "there are more than sufficient indications and evidence" to activate the procedure. It does so with the argument that the head of the Spanish executive knew in advance that "the invasion of Ceuta" would occur.

This procedure requires the initiative to be presented by at least one-quarter of the members of the Congress of Deputies and, therefore, would only require the PP, which has not yet commented, to support it. It has a more complicated time, however, for it to be approved because it requires an absolute majority of the chamber and it seems difficult for the investiture bloc to break over this issue. Junts, which has parted ways with the Spanish government, has also not commented and for now has limited itself to demanding that unaccompanied minors do not arrive in Catalonia and to demanding the delegation of powers in immigration.

Amidst this internal and external tug-of-war, the Civil Guard has dispatched the ship Río Segura to Melilla this Sunday to reinforce security in the face of recent episodes of migratory pressure. The vessel, flagship of the Civil Guard's Maritime Service, is intended for high-seas operations and is prepared to carry out missions of border control, fight against drug trafficking and smuggling, actions against environmental crimes, and rescue services. The Government's delegate in Melilla, Sabrina Moh, who visited the patrol boat, has thanked the incorporation of the ship into the operation deployed in Melilla.

Meanwhile, the same Civil Guard recovered the body of a man this Sunday in the waters of Ceuta, bringing the number of deaths related to the massive influx of migrants registered last July 30 to 83, according to the Efe agency. The body, in an advanced state of decomposition, was located by agents of the Maritime Service and the GEAS of the Civil Guard.