After Weeks of Crisis in Ceuta, Morocco Makes a Promise to Spain
Morocco promises its “full cooperation” in organizing the return of migrants who have remained in Ceuta since the mass crossings at the end of July. Nasser Bourita renewed this commitment to José Manuel Albares during a meeting in New York.
The Moroccan and Spanish foreign ministers met on Thursday, September 24, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. Their discussion notably focused on the thousands of migrants who entered Ceuta on July 30 and are still in the city.
The returns concern people in an irregular situation who cannot benefit from international protection. According to sources from the Spanish Foreign Ministry cited by Europa Press, Nasser Bourita assured that Morocco would cooperate so that they could leave “as quickly as possible.”
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This position had already been officially stated by Rabat on September 10. The Moroccan Foreign Ministry had then questioned why those who entered illegally on July 30 and 31 had not yet been returned, despite Morocco’s commitment to readmit them.
Rabat had also criticized Spain’s continued custody of unaccompanied minors separated from their families. Bourita’s new statement therefore confirms that Morocco accepts the principle of returns, provided that the people concerned have no right to asylum or to any other form of protection.
Albares puts sovereignty back on the table
The meeting was not limited to migration management. José Manuel Albares recalled that Spain wanted to maintain good relations with Morocco, but that these relations had to be based on respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and the principles established by the 2022 joint declaration.
This clarification comes after several statements by Moroccan ministers claiming Ceuta and Melilla. Madrid had reacted strongly, while Bourita had assured that these positions did not reflect the official line of the Moroccan government.
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Albares had already publicly set out this limit a few days before his meeting with Bourita. “Spain does not discuss its territorial integrity with Morocco or anyone else, which of course includes Ceuta and Melilla,” the Spanish minister had stated.
