Melilla Leader Affirms Spanish Sovereignty Amid Moroccan Territorial Claims

"The Spanishness of the city is not negotiable," De Castro said on Tuesday, regarding the hybrid strategy that Morocco is said to be deploying to annex Ceuta and Melilla to its territory, as mentioned in the report of the Observatory of Ceuta and Melilla.

To read: Spanish Government Reaffirms Sovereignty Over Ceuta and Melilla Amid Diplomatic Tensions

The president of the government of Melilla then stressed that relations with Morocco "have always evolved in a jagged way, with crises occurring from time to time, and especially now that the borders are closed". He calls on the Spanish authorities "to try to improve as much as possible" relations with Morocco, a neighboring and partner country that "will be forever".

To read: Morocco’s Hybrid Strategy Targets Spanish Enclaves Ceuta and Melilla, Experts Warn

De Castro also returned to the possibility of integrating Ceuta and Melilla into the Schengen area, stating that the issue "has not been raised again". But this issue is a matter of diplomacy and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, is studying it with Rabat, he assures, adding that "the solutions to this type of problem essentially lie in the European institutions".