A government representative for Spain says that a "new era" is to be expected after an agreement on trade and customs regulations on Thursday. The agreement meant that goods could be transported across the border from Ceuta to Morocco for the first time since 2018. Previously, only passenger traffic was allowed to cross the border.
However, the truck carrying electrical products was not allowed to deliver the goods in Morocco, but was forced to return with a full load to Ceuta. Spain's representative in Melilla and Ceuta, Sabrina Moh, said it was due to "technical issues" and that practical trade barriers will be resolved over time.
Morocco allowed the reopening of border crossings in 2022 after Spain, among other things, backed a Moroccan proposal for the future of Western Sahara – another conflict area on the North African coast.
The controversy over the former Spanish colony of Western Sahara led Morocco to close all border crossings to Melilla and Ceuta in 2018.
The small territories of Ceuta and Melilla constitute the EU's only actual external land border in Africa.
