EU sends boats to English Channel to help tackle “migration crisis”

The European Union’s border agency Frontex will deploy patrol boats to the English Channel and North Sea to assist with search-and-rescue operations involving migrants, according to authorities responsible for managing the waters.

Authorities said Frontex will deploy two Spanish vessels from September through October, followed by a Lithuanian vessel that will operate until January, Caliber.Az reports, citing Reuters.

The vessels will join French patrols in the area.

The development comes days after the leaders of France and Britain met to discuss migration.

The English Channel is one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, and many migrants have died while attempting to cross its strong currents from France to Britain.

Smugglers frequently overload small inflatable boats, leaving them at risk of sinking.

In August, French coastguards rescued 157 people from a migrant boat that caught fire while attempting to cross the Channel.

"In response to the ongoing migration crisis in the Channel, Frontex will deploy patrol vessels to complement temporarily French assets engaged in search and rescue operations," the France-based Maritime Prefecture for the Channel and the North Sea said in a statement.

Migration remains one of Europe’s most contentious political issues. In Britain, the ruling Labour Party is facing growing pressure from the populist Reform UK party, which has pledged to halt migrant arrivals by small boats.

Britain announced in April that it would provide France with up to £660 million ($892.72 million) under a three-year border security agreement aimed at reducing illegal crossings of the Channel. Part of the funding is tied to the results achieved under the deal.

The two countries also agreed last year to a "one in, one out" pilot scheme under which France would accept the return of undocumented migrants who arrive in Britain by small boats. In return, Britain would admit an equal number of asylum seekers with legitimate claims and British family connections.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov