Spain Seeks EU Support in Diplomatic Crisis with Morocco Over Migration

Pedro Sanchez continues his diplomatic maneuver to rally Europe to his cause in the crisis that opposes him to his neighbor. Spain intends to be at the center of European decisions to curb the migration crisis. To this end, the Spanish delegation arrived at the meeting that the EU heads of state and government are holding in Brussels with a message. "There is no better or greater ally of Morocco within the EU than Spain. Our relationship is strategic, we want it to be as constructive as possible, but based on two axes: trust and respect."

For Sanchez, the EU has done its part of the work so that Rabat can regain control of migration flows. His government "wishes Spain to continue to be the privileged mediator between Morocco and Brussels". At this extraordinary summit of the heads of state and government of the Twenty-seven yesterday Monday, he also stressed, "We must always remind Morocco that there is no better or greater ally within the European Union than Spain to defend such strategic interests so important for Morocco and so necessary for the European Union as well."

After a week of crisis, and after receiving the immediate support of all the leading institutions, repeatedly stressing that "the borders of Ceuta are the borders of the Union," Sánchez thanked his peers for their support, but he especially wanted to signal to Rabat that there is no one better than his country to "defend Morocco’s strategic interests within the European Union."

The Madrid, Rabat and Brussels triangle has experienced all possible combinations in recent days. The Spanish government has requested and led the support of the European Commission, the European Council and the European Parliament, with tweets, statements and messages that leave no room for ambiguity. But at the same time, it did not want the EU to take a leading role. "I want to thank the solidarity and firm response of the institutions. The three have expressed their solidarity with Spain when they saw the images of the arrival in Ceuta. Secondly, I want to say that for us, migration is an important challenge that all the neighborhood relations of the EU and Spain with Morocco must be based on two pillars: trust and respect," the president assured upon arrival.