* Non resident because I live in Africa now!

A short thread below. On a more personal note, this marks my return to @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social as a non resident* associate fellow. I will be publishing a piece on this very soon. And many more to come!

The world is not a nice place right now. If the members of Schengen cannot work together to protect it, then Europe is short of extending an invitation to all our adversaries. /Ends

To be clear, Spain is by no means a victim in this story. Madrid retaliated to Italy's absurd border controls (have you ever seen anyone crossing by foot from Ceuta to Milan Malpensa airport?). And it still refuses to apportion responsibility to Morocco.

What happens when they know they can simply test the resilience of Schengen and everything that will happen is that member countries will use it against each other? And what role do EU institutions have if they don't forcefully defend one of Europe's most cherished achievements?

In Ceuta, none of these elements were present. Which is dangerous not only for the stability of the Schengen area, but for the integrity of the European continent. Think about it: most of our adversaries, and some friends, have territorial claims over Europe now.

Third, it needs to be credible: both outsiders and insiders should know that countries would do "Whatever It Takes" to defend it.

Second, it needs to be defensible: those outside of it should be willing, and able, to defend it.

First, Schengen needs to be definitive: those outside of it need to know where the border is and what would happen if they try to cross it without permission.

My main point is that Schengen is not a normal border: it has no army to defend it, no precise frontiers and no political community who feels strongly about identity. Schengen only works because is based on three elements, all of which require trust.

I also look at what could be done the next time a crisis happens. Because they will continue to happen. Schengen is resilient enough. Trust amongst member-states is not.

It has been more than a month since 80,000 people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta in 48 hours. In Spain, the crisis is far from over. But what are the consequences for Schengen? In this podcast, I explain what happened, why and what it means to Europe's borderless area.