Africa in the heart of Europe: Ceuta and Melilla and the myth of the Pyrenees
For centuries, a derogatory and hackneyed phrase, erroneously attributed to Alexandre Dumas or Stendhal, has attempted to dismiss Iberian uniqueness by claiming that “Africa is in the Pyrenees.” This assertion, intended as a biting joke about supposed Spanish exoticism, missed the mark both geographically and politically. Africa does not begin in northern Spain, but the European Union does begin in North Africa. And not as a historical accident or a colonial anomaly, but as a reality fully integrated into the sovereignty of a European state: the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla.
Nestled on the northern coast of the African continent, Ceuta and Melilla are often subject to geopolitical oversimplifications. However, their history dismantles any superficial narrative. Their connection to the Spanish Crown does not date back to the colonial division of the 19th century, but much earlier: Melilla has been Spanish since 1497 and Ceuta since 1640 (following its incorporation into the Hispanic Crown with the Iberian Union in 1580). Both territories were Spanish centuries before the borders of modern Morocco were drawn.
What is truly unique about Ceuta and Melilla in the 21st century is not only their undeniable Spanish identity, but also their status as the only land border between the European Union and the African continent. Crossing their border crossings does not mean passing from one country to another; it means traversing between two deeply rooted socioeconomic and legal realities. They are, quite literally, Europe in Africa.
Being on the African map and part of the European project makes Ceuta and Melilla veritable living laboratories of contemporary geopolitics. There, the complex common migration policy is managed, EU border security is defended, and a daily multicultural coexistence unfolds that challenges reductionist views of European identity.
Those who consider Ceuta and Melilla anomalies forget that the Europe of regions is defined not only by continental continuity, but also by the bonds of law, history, and democratic sovereignty. Far from the hackneyed irony about the Pyrenees, the reality is much more fascinating: Europe’s political and civic roots lie on the same southern coast of the Mediterranean.
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