Spain's enclave faces "wave of illegal immigration," France strengthens land border checks.

On August 1 local time, French Interior Minister Grald Darmanin stated that in response to the recent surge of irregular migration faced by the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa, France has strengthened checks along the French-Spanish land border and emphasized that Spain "absolutely cannot" withdraw from the Schengen Area. Darmanin noted that France has already deployed additional police forces to the French-Spanish border, enhanced land border checks, and invested in drones, aerial patrols, and railway patrols to address the impacts of the migration surge in Ceuta. Furthermore, Darmanin stated, "Spain has no need to exit the Schengen Area; there is absolutely no such possibility." He emphasized that France will continue to maintain close coordination with Spain to jointly address the issue of illegal immigration.