Italy is not the only country to see Spain as soft on migration, though.
Meloni’s call for an urgent meeting of interior ministers to be held on Tuesday was signed by almost two dozen EU heads of state, calling for the elimination of all policies that could be “pull factors” to Europe.
Above all, they mean Spain’s controversial move to allow hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants apply for residence and work permits and “regularise” their status.
The government’s pragmatic: Spain is ageing and needs workers.
But those who flocked to the beaches of Ceuta this week were not heading to sign up for a campaign that’s already closed.
Sanchez himself points instead to a recent ruling by Spain’s Supreme Court: it said those who enter by sea cannot be pushed back immediately.
The prime minister argues that was misrepresented by smugglers to promise an easy path to Europe.
The crowd heading for Ceuta didn’t need to pay smugglers, though, because most were Moroccan and the route is well known.
The message was actually spread online.
Migrants have shown social media posts to reporters with people shouting that “Spain is Open” and jumping into the sea.
Multiple accounts we’ve checked ourselves show young people in wetsuits and flippers, or filming themselves already swimming, mixed with pictures from inside Ceuta itself.
Some have only been active for weeks. Several have tens of thousands of likes.
All their promises were false.
The crowds who made it to kiss the shore in Ceuta with joy were met with nothing. Without food or shelter, and with no way on to continental Europe, most quickly turned back.