The union of Aragon and Castile against Moroccans has been reincarnated in a union between left and right to scapegoat Morocco over Ceuta while ignoring their own failures.
Once again, Spanish politicians from across the spectrum have chosen the easy path of accusing Morocco rather than confronting the uncomfortable truths about migration, pull factors, and historical realities.
The recent mass crossings into Ceuta, triggered in significant measure by a Spanish court decision that weakened deterrence, have prompted familiar recriminations. Yet the facts paint a very different picture of Morocco’s role and of Spain’s expectations.
Even senior figures in Pedro Sánchez’s own government have publicly rejected claims of Moroccan blackmail or orchestration and underlined the reality of cooperation.
Sánchez has repeatedly affirmed that there is no intelligence information casting doubt on the Moroccan authorities’ role. He thanked Morocco for its willingness to cooperate so that repatriations could proceed as quickly as possible, describing bilateral cooperation on migration as “constant and fluid” and “frankly positive.”
Justice Minister Félix Bolaños said “there is no evidence that Morocco launched or drove the mass entry” of people into Ceuta.
He praised positive judicial cooperation with Morocco, rejected “insinuations and suspicions” without proof, and called for respect toward a neighboring country with which Spain must maintain good relations.
These statements from the highest levels of the Spanish executive itself demolish the blackmail narrative pushed by parts of the Spanish left and right.
Morocco prevented over 160,000 irregular migration attempts across 2024 and 2025. Official figures show authorities thwarted approximately 78,685 attempts in 2024 and 73,640 in 2025.
These sustained efforts, carried out at considerable cost to Moroccan security forces and resources, kept far larger numbers from reaching European shores. When roughly 70,000 people entered Ceuta in the recent surge following the Spanish court ruling, the scale of the pressure implies that at least 200,000 or more were stopped or deterred from crossing that night of July 30-31.
Morocco is not Europe’s policeman, yet it continues to shoulder a disproportionate share of the security burden.
Crucially, Morocco cooperated fully on returns. Those who entered were allowed to come back without obstacles. One can only imagine the chaos that would have ensued had Rabat refused cooperation.
The crisis would have deepened dramatically, with lasting humanitarian, security, and political consequences for Spain and the wider European Union.
Morocco further requested the return of minors and urged Spain to overcome its own legal hurdles.
Migration is a multilayered phenomenon driven by economic disparities, conflict, climate pressures, and, critically, pull factors created in Europe.
Over-reliance on a pure security approach is neither sustainable nor fair. Spain has generated multiple attractions, through judicial decisions, reception policies, and political messaging, then expects Morocco to perform the dirty work of containment.
The recent Spanish court decision annulling immediate returns for those who enter by sea had imposed real costs on Morocco, which then had to reinforce its apparatus at the expense of its own citizens and resources.
Morocco spends an estimated 500 million euros annually on migration control and border management. EU financial support remains far below.
Spanish left and right politicians who rush to accuse Morocco of blackmail reveal more about their domestic agendas than about the realities on the ground. They prefer external scapegoats to honest discussion of pull factors, legal inconsistencies, inadequate burden-sharing, and the limits of treating a sovereign partner as a buffer.
