French authorities will start stopping migrant vessels in English Channel after UK pressure
French officials have consented to start intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of pressure from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister sent a letter to the French leader asking him to back the initiative and saying there currently "lack any effective deterrent" in the Channel.
French security forces will be allowed to intercept the small boats at sea, but only before they've collected their migrants, according to authoritative statements.
French authorities have rarely intervened to prevent the overcrowded boats departing from the shoreline because it is considered excessively high a danger to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these tactics this month... We have zero effective deterrent in the Channel."
Now, a French naval police representative states personnel will start taking action at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to stop boats, which had previously been reported as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the vessels.
This determination to take action at all is a major step forward, following a brief shift towards a stricter strategy this summer, which dropped off when the previous government official departed from government.
This was demonstrated in the summer month, preceding a summit between the UK leader and President, when French police were observed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Now French officials will once more be allowed to intercept boats before they collect asylum-seeking passengers from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's uncertain how the small boats will be stopped.
Strong winds are presently postponing the start of intervention operations and the people-smuggling networks will be seeking methods to adapt to avoid detection, as they have done so often in the previous instances.
UK immigration authorities and the Prime Minister's office have been contacted for comment.
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