After breach at Spain's border, EU countries downplay political divide

+ Europe After breach at Spain's border, EU countries downplay political divide August 5, 20264:44 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition By Teri Schultz After breach at Spain's border, EU countries downplay political divide Listen &middot; 3:24 3:24 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5919246/nx-s1-9875734" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript European Union nations are downplaying tensions after tens of thousands of people entered Spanish territory from Morocco last week and as right-wing parties try to capitalize on anti-migration sentiment. Sponsor Message Transcript MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: The situation on the border between Spain and Morocco is no longer an emergency. Tens of thousands of people crossed into the Spanish territory of Ceuta last Thursday. Most have now left, but as Teri Schultz reports, there is still a political divide in the European Union.

+ TERI SCHULTZ: When the population of the Spanish border town of Ceuta on the north African coast nearly doubled in two days due to a sudden increase in would-be migrants, it sent a wave of panic throughout the European Union. Would these people get through the Spanish border and enter the rest of Europe? Spoiler - no, they wouldn't. But EU migration commissioner Magnus Brunner was keeping a close eye on that. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) MAGNUS BRUNNER: These past few days were, I would say, a test of our European resilience on the one hand and of the security of our external borders. SCHULTZ: If that sounds like the other 26 countries had rallied behind Spain, think again. Many actually blamed Madrid. That sentiment was toned down by the time EU interior ministers met in emergency session Tuesday. But as the crisis was underway, 22 of the bloc's 27 prime ministers suggested in a hastily drafted letter that a ruling on migrant rights taken by the Spanish Supreme Court on July 8 and the government's decision this year to allow hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants living in Spain to apply for residency may have encouraged the rush, while Commissioner Brunner acknowledged there's no proof of that. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) BRUNNER: It's not a good signal. Definitely not. It's not a good signal for the rest of Europe. SCHULTZ: Migration expert Saila Heinikoski with the Finnish Institute of International Affairs has her own ideas about what's not good for Europe - the instinct by some EU member states to suspend visa-free travel with Spain, as Italy did, even though none of the incoming migrants made it through Ceuta's own border protection to travel onward. SAILA HEINIKOSKI: That was really, really surprising, and I think very detrimental for the EU as a whole. SCHULTZ: Even Heinikoski's native Finland, the EU country furthest from Ceuta, immediately said it would reinforce its borders when the crossings started. Heinikoski also noted Finland has itself experienced migration manipulation on its border with Russia. She says upcoming elections in many countries are making migration issues even more politically charged than usual. HEINIKOSKI: It tells about the whole political situation in the EU at the moment that it benefits the far right. They use it for their own political purposes. SCHULTZ: Michele LeVoy is the director of the Brussels-based Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants. She says research has disproven the argument that regularization of migrants creates a pull factor, and the fact that at least 80 people died in the Ceuta incident underscores the need for more legal pathways for people to enter Europe. MICHELE LEVOY: People dying while trying to come in is really what the focus should be. Why are people ready to risk their lives? SCHULTZ: Discussing ways to bring people in is much less politically popular at the moment than how to better keep them out, which was the top priority of the EU meeting Tuesday. And with the Spanish government outraged at how it was treated by most of its EU counterparts, there are fences to mend in more ways than one. For NPR News, I'm Teri Schultz in Helsinki. (SOUNDBITE OF CHINESE CIGARETTES' "STAR PLAYER") Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{310:function(e,n,o){o.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([o.e(1),o.e(2),o.e(3),o.e(4),o.e(80)]).then((e=>{o(15),o(769),o(155),o(176),o(93),o(447),o(254),o(128),o(130),o(754),o(175),o(755),o(255),o(78),o(773)}).bind(null,o)).catch(o.oe)},782:function(e,n,o){e.exports=o(310)}},[[782,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();