French authorities will start intercepting migrant vessels in Channel after UK pressure
France has agreed to begin intercepting migrant vessels in the Channel, following months of insistence from the United Kingdom.
This policy shift follows the Prime Minister wrote to the President urging him to support the initiative and stating there presently "lack any effective preventive measure" in the Channel.
French security forces have been authorized to intercept the migrant vessels at sea, but exclusively prior to they've picked up their migrants, according to authoritative statements.
French authorities have infrequently acted to prevent the overcrowded boats departing from the coastline because it is viewed as too great a danger to both personnel and civilians.
"It is essential that we implement these methods this month... We have no effective deterrent in the Channel waters."
Now, a French maritime police spokesperson states officers will start intervening at sea, with the aim of safeguarding human life.
Notably, the spokesperson ruled out the use of entanglement devices to intercept boats, which had earlier been reported as a potential technique to disable the propellers of the vessels.
This determination to take action at all is a major advancement, coming after a short-lived shift towards a stricter strategy this summer, which ceased when the previous 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 French police were observed wading into the sea to slash the hulls of a boat.
Now French authorities will once more be allowed to intercept boats before they collect migrant individuals from the coastal areas of northern France, however it's not clear how the vessels 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 detection, as they have frequently done in the past.
The Home Office and Downing Street have been contacted for comment.
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