The Home Office has announced that UK security professionals will assist France in safeguarding the Paris Olympics, demonstrating a strengthening partnership between the two countries.
The two governments have also proposed increasing the use of drones and sea barriers to stop small boats carrying asylum seekers from crossing the Channel.
The proposed actions come after discussions in Paris on Tuesday between James Cleverly, the UK’s Secretary of State for the Home Department, and Gérald Darmanin, the French Minister of the Interior.
According to reliable sources, police officers and security service members will be collaborating with French officials during the upcoming Olympic Games in July.
They plan to discuss their involvement in significant events such as the London 2012 Olympics, Queen Elizabeth’s funeral, and King Charles’s coronation.
Darmanin stated that France and the UK will strengthen their collaboration on migration. He also mentioned that their combined efforts will address the safety of significant upcoming events this year, with a specific emphasis on the summer Olympics. This was included in a joint statement.
Cleverly made a commitment to maintain strong collaboration between our countries, especially as France prepares to host the Olympics this summer.
The issue of security leading up to the Olympics was brought to attention after a visitor was fatally stabbed near the Eiffel Tower in December.
Large-scale attacks have occurred in Paris, including the 2015 incident at the Bataclan where Islamist extremists entered a music venue and opened fire on cafe terraces, resulting in the death of 130 individuals.
The United Kingdom’s government plans to increase the deployment of drones and water barriers in efforts to prevent “taxi-boat launches.” These launches involve smugglers’ boats waiting 10 meters from the shore, allowing asylum seekers to board and making it difficult for police to apprehend them.
In March, the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron had their first bilateral meeting since Brexit. They reached an agreement for the UK to provide £500m to assist France in addressing the issue of small boats crossing the channel.
It is clear that the plans revealed on Tuesday will not lead to an increase in UK funds.
The government has declined requests from refugee organizations to establish additional secure and authorized pathways for individuals seeking asylum in the UK in order to prevent fatalities in the Channel.
According to official data, the majority of individuals making the journey across the Channel in small boats are refugees.
The latest announcement came out alongside the Office for National Statistics’ projection that net migration would add 6.1 million individuals to the UK’s population, representing a nearly 10% increase by mid-2036.
Cleverly has already announced a package of measures designed to reduce net migration by 300,000 from its record high of 745,000 in 2022.
Source: theguardian.com
