MADRID/ROME — Spain checked nearly 200 travellers arriving from Italy on Saturday, the first day of temporary border controls introduced amid a growing dispute between the two countries over irregular migration.
Spain’s Interior Ministry said officers checked 199 passengers on 12 flights from Italy. The checks were carried out at the country’s six largest airports: Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Bilbao, Alicante and Valencia.
The Spanish government announced on Friday that controls on flights and ships arriving from Italy would remain in place until September 7. The decision followed Italy’s move to suspend the passport-free Schengen arrangements with Spain.
Rome introduced its own controls on August 1 after a sudden arrival of around 72,000 migrants in Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta on July 30. Italian authorities said the measures were linked to concerns over irregular migration and would remain in force until at least August 15.
Italy has said the controls will not affect Spanish citizens or other European Union nationals travelling to Italy. Instead, officials will carry out targeted checks on non-EU citizens arriving from Spain by air or sea.
“We hope to be able to lift the suspension soon, as soon as there is no longer any risk,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told the newspaper Corriere della Sera in an interview published on Sunday.
The dispute has placed fresh pressure on Europe’s Schengen system, which allows people to travel without passport checks across 29 European countries. Member states can temporarily restore border controls when they believe there is a threat to security or public order.
Although the checks are described as temporary and targeted, their return highlights the political strain caused by rising migration pressures. For travellers, the measures may mean longer waits and additional document checks at airports and ports on routes between Spain and Italy.
