EU declares Ceuta migrant crisis over, vows to strengthen borders and prevention

The European Union has declared the recent migratory crisis in Ceuta, Spain, officially over. This declaration comes after approximately 72,000 migrants entered the Spanish enclave, a situation that drew criticism from several member states and shifted focus towards reinforcing external borders and prevention strategies.

During an extraordinary meeting of EU interior ministers, European Commissioner for Home Affairs Magnus Brunner stated, "For the moment, I believe that Europe has definitively overcome this test." The ministers unanimously expressed solidarity with Spain, despite initial criticisms from some member states regarding Spain's migration management during the crisis.

The consensus among EU countries is to bolster the bloc's external frontiers and establish "solid alliances with third countries." They also emphasized the need for "improved shared situational awareness," proposing the development of early warning systems, including pre-frontier intelligence and social media monitoring.

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For the moment, I believe that Europe has definitively overcome this test.

The crisis had led to Italy temporarily reintroducing controls on its internal air and sea borders with Spain, citing national security. Some ministers, like Finland's Mari Rantanen, had even suggested excluding Spain from the Schengen Area. However, the meeting concluded with a unified stance of support for Spain.

Brunner acknowledged the role of Morocco in managing returns and border reinforcement on the North African side, while Spain and the European Commission avoided directly linking the events to any complicity from Morocco. Spain is reportedly conducting an investigation into the matter.

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These last few days were a test of our European resilience, a test of the security of our external borders, and they clearly showed that there are actors without any consideration for the security or even the lives of innocent people.