Italy Proposes Migration Centers Outside the EU
After the Ceuta crisis, emergency EU meetings are held in the shadow of a fierce exchange of accusations between Spain and Italy over who failed in managing migration.
After the Ceuta crisis, emergency EU meetings are held in the shadow of a fierce exchange of accusations between Spain and Italy over who failed in managing migration.
The European Union is facing a new political crisis triggered by migration, this time marked by an open conflict between Rome and Madrid. As EU interior ministers hold an emergency meeting on Monday, August 3, 2026, regarding the situation in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, Italy has announced it will propose the establishment of migration centers outside the Union's borders, modeled on its own agreement with Albania, with a focus on locations in Africa.
According to the Italian news agency ANSA, Rome will propose a plan for return centers funded from the EU budget, located outside the bloc. This topic, known as the externalization of migration, is expected to dominate discussions in the autumn, including the EU summit in October 2026. Although 21 member states support Rome's initiative, and the European People's Party (EPP) is applying pressure, the key open question remains funding from the common European budget, which could face resistance from fiscally conservative member states.
In parallel with the search for solutions, a verbal war has escalated between the two Mediterranean member states. Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares directly called out the Italian government, stating that it "was not up to the task" and that Italy, not Spain, is the main entry point for migrants into Europe. His Italian counterpart, Antonio Tajani, responded by citing figures. "I do not answer the Spanish foreign minister; the numbers do. Numbers that are the result of hard work, bilateral agreements with eight countries of origin and transit that today promote regular and safe migration flows and combat human trafficking," Tajani said, according to ANSA.
According to the latest data from Frontex and the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM), the central Mediterranean route, with its main destination of Lampedusa, remains the primary entry point into the EU. By July 15, 2026, 15,323 people had arrived in Italy by sea, while 14,479 entered Spain during the same period. The Italian Ministry of the Interior highlights a dramatic drop in arrivals: a 55% decrease compared to last year, and an 88% drop compared to the same period in 2023, when 75,821 arrivals were recorded. For comparison, arrivals by mid-July 2024 were 30,323, and in 2025, 33,116.
Looking at the overall five-year period from 2021 to 2026, the difference is even more pronounced. Italy recorded 478,000 entries during this period, while Spain saw 234,760. However, Madrid warns that it is Spain that is currently bearing the greatest burden, especially after the Ceuta crisis. It is worth recalling that Italy itself has gone through serious crises, such as the one in Lampedusa in September 2023, when more than 10,000 people arrived on the island between September 12 and 15, temporarily surpassing the number of permanent residents.
Attempting to calm tensions, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen sent a letter to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, responding to his request sent on Saturday. "Migration is a European challenge that requires a European response. That is why solidarity is key," von der Leyen wrote, according to ANSA. At the meeting of the Permanent Representatives Committee (Coreper II), "strong solidarity" with Spain was expressed, along with a shared assessment that the situation in Ceuta was quickly brought under control.
From across the Atlantic, former U.S. President Donald Trump seized on the crisis to launch sharp criticism. "Immigration is killing Europe," Trump said, adding in the Oval Office: "Two things are killing Europe: immigration and energy."
While political bickering continues, the human cost of migration in the Mediterranean keeps rising. Despite an overall 40% drop in illegal border crossings into the EU in the first five months of 2026, a trend observed across Europe according to Frontex data, deaths at sea have dramatically increased. On the central Mediterranean route alone, 872 people died in the first seven months of 2026, an average of four deaths per day, a 150% increase compared to the previous year. According to IOM data, the mortality ratio has risen from one victim per 256 migrants eleven years ago to one victim per 11.9 migrants in the first half of this year, as reported by La Repubblica.
These figures, which the IOM notes are likely underestimated because not all shipwrecks are known, cast a dark shadow over diplomatic discussions on migration management.
