LONDON: Five European countries including the UK, France and Germany agreed on Tuesday to jointly step up the fight against people-trafficking, as London and Berlin signed a bilateral commitment to tackle the gangs.
France鈥檚 Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, Germany鈥檚 Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, the Netherlands鈥� migration minister Marjolein Faber, and Belgium鈥檚 migration minister Nicole de Moor and Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden, all joined UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Britain鈥檚 border security commander Martin Hewitt for Tuesday鈥檚 meeting in London.
Ex-police chief Hewitt was appointed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in September to help deliver on his pre-election pledge to 鈥渟mash鈥� the people smuggling gangs.
A growing issue among European nations, rising irregular migration was also one of the main themes that dominated the UK鈥檚 July election which swept Starmer鈥檚 Labour Party to power.
So far this year nearly 34,000 undocumented migrants have reached British shores across the English Channel, arriving on dangerous, flimsy vessels. At least 70 people have died, making 2024 the deadliest year on record.
Berlin鈥檚 interior ministry told AFP that under the bilateral agreement with the UK, signed on Monday, it will look at 鈥渃larifying鈥� the law surrounding activities carried out in Germany in preparation for smuggling people across the Channel.
鈥淭his will give German prosecutors more tools to tackle the supply and storage of dangerous small boats equipment and allow the UK and Germany to better counter the continually evolving tactics of people smuggling gangs,鈥� said the UK interior ministry.
Net legal migration to the UK is also running at historically high levels, estimated at 728,000 for the year to June 2024, while the toppling of president Bashar Assad threatens a period of instability in Syria that smuggling gangs could look to exploit.
Germany鈥檚 ambassador to London, Miguel Berger, said many of the people-smuggling networks bringing people from Belarus through Poland to Germany were also sending migrants across the Channel.
He said that as a result of Brexit, the UK had withdrawn from EU accords on third-country immigration and the London-Berlin agreement would 鈥渟ee how we can again strengthen our cooperation.鈥�
Germany鈥檚 Faeser said the two countries were focused on ending 鈥渢he inhumane activities of criminal migrant smuggling organizations.鈥�
鈥淏y cramming people into inflatable boats under threats of violence and sending them across the Channel, these organizations put human lives at risk.鈥�
Many of the crossings were 鈥減lanned in Germany鈥� and the deal would help to counter 鈥渢his unscrupulous business with even more resolve,鈥� she added.
The European ministers鈥� talks in London were part of the so-called Calais Group.
The ministers agreed to coordinate efforts to deter would-be migrants from paying smugglers, strengthen law enforcement cooperation and disrupt gangs from using illicit finance schemes, according to a list of priorities published by the UK government.
They also pledged to tackle gangs鈥� use of social media to advertise their services and to explore how information can be shared to 鈥渆nhance operational and technical cooperation.鈥�
Representatives of the European Commission and the Frontex and Europol agencies also participated in the talks.
Britain鈥檚 Starmer called in November for greater international cooperation against smuggling networks, which he described as a 鈥済lobal security threat similar to terrorism.鈥�