Spain's opposition leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, remains determined to prevent the government from sweeping under the carpet and dismissing as a matter of no ... importance the incursions by Moroccan vessels into Spanish waters during, at least, the days of the mass assault on the Ceuta border this past summer.
On Friday, Feijóo called on the government to deploy the Navy to the area, summon the Moroccan ambassador and the Spanish ambassador in Rabat for consultations. In diplomatic terms, such a move indicates that bilateral relations are at a critical juncture.
The escalating calls for a response to what the opposition interprets as a clear provocation by the Moroccan authorities come after ABC reported, citing police sources, that, following the king and queen's historic visit to Ceuta and Melilla, a Moroccan patrol boat invaded Spanish waters off the coast of Melilla on Thursday.
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Feijóo called for Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to appear before Diputación Permanente and for an investigation into Morocco.
"Several Moroccan incursions into Spanish waters are not an isolated incident, but a repeated act of aggression that demands a firm response," Feijóo said on Friday. "Spain is not for sale. Spain defends itself."
The prime minister admitted, in an informal conversation with journalists on 12 October, that a Moroccan frigate and several patrol boats had entered Spanish waters on 30 and 31 July, at the time of the influx of more than 70,000 people from the North African country into Ceuta. He did not report the matter to Parliament on 3 September. Sánchez is said to have played down the matter.
The government has stated that this incursion had "nothing to do" with the border breach and that it was swiftly resolved through dialogue with the authorities of the neighbouring country.
According to reports, however, the intrusions continued throughout the first few days of August and forced the deployment of reinforcements from the Spanish Navy to ensure sovereignty over the waters.
In Brussels on Thursday, Sánchez said that the proof that this was an isolated incident is that "no such incident has occurred in recent months".
Good neighbourly relations
Sources at Moncloa have now also responded to Feijóo's demand, stating that "neither the Guardia Civil nor the Navy are aware of any incidents having taken place after 30 and 31 July".
The government considers that, in the context of "good neighbourly relations" in the strait, it is normal for lines to be crossed on occasion and that the matter is usually resolved through a warning between the navies. "Coordination, is good and consistent," Moncloa sources said.
They also pointed out that a foray by a frigate (a warship equipped with precise navigation systems) is not the same as one by the patrol boats that are usually stationed near the water's edge, which can sometimes cross the border without even realising it, as the Guardia Civil have confirmed.
"What Feijóo, the leader of the opposition and candidate for the premiership, has done by calling for a diplomatic crisis with our neighbouring country is irresponsible," sources stated.