Luxembourg Reaffirms Schengen Values During EU Talks on Ceuta Migration Crisis

On Tuesday 4 August 2026, Luxembourg’s Ministry of Home Affairs reported on the participation of Minister for Home Affairs, Léon Gloden, in the informal meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council, held by videoconference and dedicated to the situation in Ceuta, Spain.

According to the ministry, Spanish Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, first provided an overview of the crisis faced by the Spanish authorities in recent days in Ceuta, which was marked by 75 deaths and more than 70,000 irregular entries, according to the Spanish authorities. 

The Spanish minister detailed that thanks to a rapid and effective coordinated operational response, almost all of those concerned were returned to Morocco within 48 hours. The Spanish minister also thanked the Member States, including Luxembourg, for their support and expressions of solidarity with Spain, as well as the Moroccan authorities for their good cooperation in facilitating the returns.

During the meeting, the Member States expressed their solidarity with Spain. It was also emphasised that the circumstances which led to this situation would need to be fully clarified and that the necessary lessons should be learned. Regarding the external dimension, the Member States agreed that partnerships and cooperation with third countries are essential for managing migration flows.

During his intervention, Minister Gloden thanked Spain for its handling of the crisis and reiterated his support. He considered that the Spanish authorities had, at all times, fulfilled their responsibilities towards the European Union and the Schengen Area, and that the situation had been managed quickly and effectively. He regretted that attempts had been made to instrumentalise the debate on Schengen without relying on objective facts, even though no migrants had reached mainland Spanish territory and there had been no secondary movements: “Schengen and its values must not be taken hostage.”

Minister Gloden also recalled the importance of continuing to strengthen controls at the external borders in order to combat irregular immigration effectively. In this context, he highlighted that irregular arrivals in Europe had fallen by 55% over the previous two years and had already decreased by 37% in 2026.

Moreover, it was noted that the fight against disinformation and against migrant smuggling networks must be strengthened at the European level.