Macron, Sunak agree UK-France migrant deal in reset summit

Published date11 March 2023
Publication titleThe Korea Times

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed a new pact Friday worth over 500 million euros to stop illegal cross-Channel migration, at a summit in Paris aimed at forging a new start after years of Brexit tensions.

The deal will see Britain step up funding to France to allow hundreds more French police to patrol the Channel and also establish a new detention center as a further deterrent.

Both leaders hailed a fresh beginning in relations between the two neighbors, after intense talks in Paris which were also marked by expressions of unity in their support for Ukraine in fighting the Russian invasion.

It was the first UK-French summit in five years, after Sunak became prime minister in October following the stormy tenures of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss marked by rancorous relations with Paris.

Macron said his talks with Sunak marked a "new start" while Sunak said it was "a new beginning, our entente renewed".

"We're writing a new chapter in this relationship," Sunak added, acknowledging the relationship "has had its challenges in recent years".

'No silver bullet'

The centerpiece of the new atmosphere Friday was the deal to thwart illegal cross-Channel migration, a prime political priority for Sunak as he seeks to rescue the popularity of the ruling right-wing Conservative party.

London will step up funding to France over the next three years to total 541 million euros ($575 million), allowing the deployment of "hundreds" of extra French law enforcement officers along the Channel coast to stop the illegal migration, the British government said in a statement.

For the first time, the UK will help fund a detention center in France to enhance its ability to cope with the number of people being trafficked across the Channel.

"We don't need to manage this problem, we need to break it," said Sunak.

"And today, we have gone further than ever before to put an end to this disgusting trade in human life."

The new funding from the UK this year is already more than double last year's package worth over 70 million euros that increased the number of French police patrolling Channel shores.

Sunak is under fierce pressure at home to reduce the number of asylum seekers arriving in Britain, and this week unveiled legislation that...

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