Italy, Spain agree to end border controls, restore Schengen rules

(ANSA) - ROME, 22 OTT - Italy and Spain are set to drop the random checks on travellers arriving from their respective countries, which have been in place since the summer, and fully restore Schengen rules. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi and his Spanish counterpart Fernando Grande-Marlaska agreed in a telephone conversation that the respective suspensions of Schengen will not be extended when they expire on Friday, sources said. The call followed a discussion of the issue between Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on the sidelines of last week's EU summit, Italy first reintroduced air and sea border controls for travellers arriving from Spain on August 1 for a month after the Ceuta migration crisis, saying it was necessary for security reasons. Spain responded with random checks on travellers coming from Italy and both countries extended the checks several times. Madrid and Italy's opposition parties blasted Rome's initial suspension of Schengen arrangements with Spain as propaganda, given that entry to the exclave of Ceuta does not automatically give access to the Schengen area and that Italy does not border Spain. (ANSA).
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