Finnish Interior Minister Mari Rantanen has accused Spain of failing to protect the Schengen Area's external border from illegal crossings, AzerNEWS reports.

"This cannot continue. Every European country should support Meloni's proposal. Countries that fail to fulfill their obligations to protect the external borders cannot remain members of the Schengen Area," Rantanen wrote in a post on social media X, referring to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Her comments came a day after thousands of migrants from Morocco crossed illegally into Spain's North African exclave of Ceuta.

Spain sent military troops and police to the city on Thursday in an aim to restore order in the city.

Ceuta is one of the European Union's two external border enclaves in Africa and serves as one of the bloc's key land entry points from the continent.

Image: Antonio Sempere/AP