US EditionIntelligence-sharing deal to halt Chinese engine use in small boats
The UK and China will identify and block Chinese-made boat engines used by smugglers, with most engines last year traced to China, aiming to disrupt migrant crossings and opioid flows.
- On Thursday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will announce a UK-China pact to work with Chinese intelligence officials to block gangs moving migrants across the English Channel, finalising it after meetings in Beijing with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang.
- Starmer argues the reliance on Chinese-made engines on Channel small boats last year highlights the importance of blocking supplies, as dinghies can carry over 100 people.
- The agreement also targets drug flows and builds on prior sanctions, with British law enforcement mapping routes and China identifying engines at risk of smuggler use.
- Officials say the pact will cut off supplies at source, stopping crossings before lives are put at risk, and Rick Jones, Deputy Director at the National Crime Agency, said it enables work with Chinese law enforcement.
- The operations behind Channel crossings span several continents and involve organised criminal gangs across Europe, North Africa and Asia; Belgian authorities earlier this month helped arrest a Turkish national linked to smuggling 10,000 people, while France banned inflatable dinghies in 2021.
6 Articles
6 Articles
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Keir Starmer set to strike new border security deal with China in fresh bid to tackle small boat crisis
Sir Keir Starmer is set to strike a new border security pact with China in a fresh bid to tackle Britain's small boat crisis.The deal, which will be signed following the Prime Minister’s meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in Beijing today, will see the two countries work together to crack down on Channel crossings.The Government said more than 60 per cent of all small boats used by smuggling gangs last year were foun…
UK to strike small boats deal with China to disrupt Channel crossings
The UK Government will work with Chinese intelligence officials to try and block criminal gangs from moving migrants across the English Channel in small boats, Sir Keir Starmer will announce on Thursday. During his visit to Beijing, the Prime Minister is set to seal a deal to cooperate on migration crime with the Chinese authorities despite concerns over the country’s espionage efforts against Britain. Under the terms of the pact, China will hel…
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