French authorities to begin intercepting migrant vessels in Channel following British demands
French officials have consented to start intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, after months of pressure from the UK.
This policy shift follows the British leader wrote to the President urging him to support the initiative and stating there currently "have no effective preventive measure" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the small boats at sea, but only before they've picked up their migrants, according to authoritative statements.
French authorities have rarely acted to stop the heavily loaded boats departing from the shoreline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both officers and individuals.
"It is essential that we implement these methods this period... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police representative states officers will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been suggested as a possible technique to disable the propellers of the boats.
The decision to intervene at all is a major advancement, coming after a brief shift towards a stricter strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous government official departed from government.
That was highlighted in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and President, when French police were observed wading into the sea to slash the sides of a boat.
Currently French authorities will again be allowed to intercept boats before they collect asylum-seeking individuals from the beaches of northern France, however it's not clear how the small boats will be prevented.
Powerful gusts are currently postponing the start of intervention operations and the human trafficking networks will be looking for methods to adjust to avoid interception, as they have done so often in the past.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
Connected Developments
- Reasons Britain cannot just return migrants to French territory
- French government backing away from pledge to intercept migrant boats
UK immigration
Channel crossings
Border security
