Italy, Spain agree to remove border checks

Passengers travelling between Italy and Spain are required to undergo passport checks, despite both countries belonging to the Schengen free-travel zone. (EPA Images pic) BRUSSELS: Italy and Spain agreed to remove tit-for-tat border checks introduced following a spat over migration after talks between the two countries' leaders, diplomatic and government sources said Friday.

The detente ends a showdown that began in summer, when Italy's interior ministry introduced controls on travellers from Spain after tens of thousands of migrants rushed from Morocco into the Spanish territory of Ceuta, in North Africa.

As part of an agreement reached at an EU summit in Brussels, Rome's measures will continue for a week more so they lapse at the same time as Madrid's, according to Italian government sources.

"The deal was struck after Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni and Spain's Pedro Sanchez held talks on the sidelines of the leaders' meeting, where migration was on the agenda," a Spanish diplomat said.

Italy and Spain do not share a land border, but passengers arriving on flights had been required to go through passport checks, which is normally not the case because both countries are members of the Schengen free-travel zone.