EU foreign policy chief meets Morocco's foreign minister in New York amid Ceuta influx
Kaja Kallas met Morocco's foreign minister Nasser Bourita in New York, a meeting disclosed by Moroccan officials following the recent surge of migrants into Ceuta.
Kaja Kallas, serving as the EU's high representative for foreign affairs, met with Morocco's foreign minister Nasser Bourita in New York outside the United Nations General Assembly building. The meeting, which was announced by Moroccan diplomatic channels, follows a recent wave of migrants crossing into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Details of the discussion have not been made public.
Earlier on September 9, Kallas also met Spanish foreign minister José Manuel Albares, but her role in addressing the Ceuta influx has been minimal. European responses have largely been driven by the interior ministry under Magnus Brunner, while Spanish officials, including Ceuta's mayor Juan Jesús Vivas, have emphasized the enclave's status as an EU external border. Additionally, the Moroccan embassy in EU institutions reportedly attempted to influence a Strasbourg debate that resulted in a resolution urging Morocco to assume responsibility for the crisis.
Why it matters
The meeting signals diplomatic engagement on a growing migration challenge at the EU's southern border.
How this story developed
- Aug 21 Spanish police detain five suspected migrant smugglers operating from Ceuta
- Sep 10 Judge María Tardón filed a request for copies of the declassified intelligence reports.
- Sep 10 Regional economy minister asserted that the national government possessed advance intelligence on the Ceuta crossing and did not implement preventive measures.
- Sep 11 Czech and Hungarian leaders condemned the EU’s emergency aid for Ceuta.
- Sep 11 Gonzalo Sanz, chief of staff to the Government delegate in Ceuta, stepped down after receiving CNI alerts about a massive migrant arrival.
- Sep 12 A police‑commissioned report described Moroccan border police as unusually sparse and granting migrants “total permission.”
- Sep 13 Minister Sira Rego urged autonomous communities to assume responsibility for Ceuta’s unaccompanied minors.
- Sep 13 The foreign minister announced an urgent trip to Brussels for talks with EU officials.
- Sep 16 The Guardia Civil raided a cramped apartment on Real street in central Ceuta, finding 25 migrants - six of them minors - living in squalid conditions.
- Sep 18 The Audiencia Nacional's Contentious‑Administrative Chamber approved the use of Ceuta port for a temporary migrant shelter.
- Sep 18 The government and defence ministry secured an unprecedented public clarification from the CNI regarding the pre‑surge intelligence alert.
- Sep 18 about 850 migrants were settled in 50 tents at the port while others returned to beach camps
- Sep 19 The port camp filled within hours, leaving many migrants still without shelter on the streets and beaches.
- Sep 20 Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez publicly shifted blame onto Ceuta mayor Juan Jesús Vivas during a press encounter, intensifying the political dispute.
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