The King of Spain will visit Ceuta, a Spanish exclave in North Africa, for the first time in 19 years. Ceuta was the site of a massive migrant crisis on July 7, when over 70,000 people crossed the border at once.
On October 1, the Spanish royal family announced that King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia will visit Ceuta in mid-October. They will also visit the nearby exclave of Melilla.
Ceuta shares a border with Morocco. Following the migrant crisis, Spain and Morocco have engaged in a blame game over responsibility.
The royal visit was initiated at the request of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Facing a political crisis due to the situation, Sánchez stated last month that Ceuta "needs national support more than ever" and requested the king's visit.
Ceuta is also entangled in sovereignty disputes with Morocco. Since gaining independence from France in 1956, Morocco has claimed that it should regain Ceuta, which has been under Portuguese and Spanish control since the 15th century, like other African colonies.
During the last royal visit in November 2007, Morocco strongly protested. At that time, Morocco labeled King Juan Carlos I's visit to Ceuta as an "unacceptable provocation" and recalled its ambassador from Spain.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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