EU Lawmaker: Attack on Ceuta is Attack on Spain and Europe, Calls for Border Security Measures

"Ceuta and Melilla are an integral part of Spanish territory and are under Spanish sovereignty. Therefore, they are the only external border of the European Union with Africa," said the Socialist MEP, Juan Fernando Lopez Aguilar, in an interview with Ceuta TV, who was among those who condemned the hybrid strategy of Morocco in Ceuta in June 2021, allowing thousands of migrants to enter the autonomous city.

According to him, closing off dialogue and cooperation "is not a good option" to return to normalcy in the autonomous cities and the Canary Islands. The MEP recalled that President Sanchez has assured that the government guarantees the territorial integrity of the two cities, without however specifying whether the new stage of relations between Spain and Morocco means that the kingdom has given up its annexationist desires on Sebta and Melilla.

To read: Spanish Enclaves Seek EU Support to Counter Moroccan Pressure

For Lopez Aguilar, "harming the territorial integrity of these autonomous cities is harming that of Spanish territory and, by extension, that of Europe. "The relations between the two countries must be based on mutual respect, which implies demanding that Morocco has no claim or misunderstanding whatsoever on Ceuta and Melilla," he insisted.

The parliamentarian is convinced that the European Parliament will not reject the proposals contained in the "More Spain, More Europe" report presented on Wednesday by Deputy Canas. However, he fears that the change in the status of Ceuta and Melilla to outermost regions is "unlikely" because it would require a revision of the treaties and ratification by each national parliament.