Ceuta puts the new Europe to the testThat question is particularly uncomfortable this August. It reflects a transformation of European migration policy that has been taking place for years and that, in 2026, has reached a decisive stage. The package consists of ten legislative acts and represents the most substantial overhaul of the European asylum system in years. The commission itself describes the new chapter in European migration policy through “more assertive migration diplomacy”, stronger external-border controls and “effective returns”, alongside legal mobility. This does not mean that everyone who reaches an EU border has a right to remain.