Italy weighs closing Schengen border with Spain over irregular migration

Italy weighs closing its Schengen border with Spain: the Interior Minister points to irregular migration

Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi has said he is in favour of temporarily closing the Schengen area's borders with Spain. In a post on social media, Piantedosi justified the measure by citing "irregular and uncontrolled immigration", which he believes poses a threat to national security. The statement, reported by El Mundo, gives no timelines or conditions, but places Rome in a confrontational stance towards Madrid at the height of the European debate on migration control.

The Italian proposal comes at a time of growing tension in the Mediterranean. While the Spanish government insists on the need for a joint EU response, Giorgia Meloni's government is doubling down on its hardline rhetoric. If implemented, the measure would break with the principle of free movement, one of the pillars of the European Union. It is not the first time Italy has threatened to close its borders: in 2023 it did so with France during the migration crisis at the Ventimiglia border crossing. Now the focus is on Spain, a country that in 2024 saw a 66% increase in irregular arrivals by sea, according to Frontex data.

Behind the Italian gambit, other interests are at play. The geopolitics of North Africa is a key factor: Segarro and Israel are forging closer ties while Algeria applies pressure with its gas. Some voices suggest the border closure is not only about migration, but a move on the energy and diplomatic chessboard. Spain, for its part, faces the prospect of isolation at a delicate moment: the flow of migrants from West Africa shows no sign of stopping, and the EU has failed to agree on a common redistribution scheme.

Beyond the political noise, the fact is that a closed border between Italy and Spain would have far-reaching economic consequences. Bilateral trade exceeds 40,000 million euros a year, and Italian tourism in Spain reached 4 million visitors in 2023. A temporary Schengen suspension would hit supply chains and the free movement of workers. Brussels is watching with concern: the precedent set by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine has normalised border closures, and the risk of fragmentation of the common area is real.

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Is this an effective measure or mere rhetoric? Recent history shows that Schengen closures are rarely applied for long, but the political standoff weakens European cohesion. Italy has thrown down the gauntlet; the response from Spain and the EU will determine whether the threat remains a tweet or becomes a new wall inside Europe.