France will start intercepting migrant vessels in English Channel following British demands
French officials have consented to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the English Channel, after months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift comes after the British leader wrote to the French leader asking him to support the initiative and saying there currently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their passengers, according to authoritative confirmation.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the heavily loaded boats leaving the coastline because it is considered excessively high a danger to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these methods this month... We have zero effective prevention in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police spokesperson states officers will begin taking action at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Notably, the spokesperson excluded the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been suggested as a possible method to disable the propellers of the boats.
The decision to take action at all is a major step forward, coming after a brief change towards a more aggressive strategy this warmer season, which dropped off when the previous Interior Minister left government.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, in the run-up to a meeting between the UK leader and French president, when French police were witnessed walking into the sea to damage the sides of a vessel.
Currently French authorities will again be permitted to stop boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of France's north coast, although it's not clear how the vessels will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently delaying the start of interceptions and the human trafficking networks will be seeking methods to adapt to avoid interception, as they have frequently done in the past.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been approached for comment.
Related Developments
- Reasons UK cannot just send back asylum seekers to France
- French government withdrawing from commitment to intercept migrant boats
UK immigration
Channel crossings
Border security
