France will start stopping migrant vessels in Channel following UK pressure
French officials have consented to start stopping migrant vessels in the English Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
The change in policy follows the British leader sent a letter to the French leader asking him to back the plan and stating there currently "have no effective deterrent" in the maritime passage.
French maritime police have been authorized to stop the small boats at sea, but exclusively prior to they've collected their migrants, according to official statements.
French authorities have infrequently acted to prevent the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as excessively high a risk to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we deploy these tactics this period... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson says officers will begin intervening at sea, with the objective of protecting lives.
Significantly, the official ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had previously been reported as a potential technique to snarl the engines of the vessels.
The decision to take action at all is a significant advancement, coming after a brief change towards a stricter strategy this summer, which dropped off when the former government official departed from office.
That was highlighted in July, in the run-up to a summit between the Prime Minister and French president, when authorities were witnessed wading into the sea to slash the sides of a vessel.
Now French authorities will once more be permitted to stop boats before they pick up asylum-seeking passengers from the beaches of France's north coast, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are currently delaying the commencement of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be looking for ways to adapt to evade detection, as they have frequently done in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and Downing Street have been contacted for response.
Connected Updates
- Reasons UK can't just return asylum seekers to French territory
- French government withdrawing from pledge to stop migrant boats
UK immigration
Channel crossings
Border security
