France told UK Home Secretary Priti Patel that it is no longer invited to European talks on the Canal’s migration crisis after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson criticized the handling of the situation by Paris, the French government said.
France was offended by a letter sent by Johnson to President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday after 27 migrants were killed trying to cross the narrow sea lane from France to Britain, the worst tragedy on one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
Macron said that Johnson’s letter, which the British leader posted on Twitter, was not a “serious” way to handle matters, it was not a “serious” way to handle matters.
“It surprises me when things are not done seriously,” Macron told a news conference in Rome.
The decision underscored the poor post-Brexit relations between the two countries and the difficulties they may face in working together to stem the flow of migrants.
“We are fed up with the double talk (of London),” said government spokesman Gabriel Attal. “(French Interior Minister Gerald) Darmanin told her counterpart that she was no longer welcome.”
London said it hoped Paris would reconsider.
“No nation can tackle this alone, so I hope the French will reconsider,” Transport Minister Grant Shapps told the BBC.
Seventeen men, seven women and three teenagers were killed when their boat went flat in the English Channel, one of many risky trips attempted by people fleeing poverty and war in Afghanistan, Iraq and beyond in small, overloaded boats. .
Johnson said he had offered to join Macron and other European leaders in discussing five steps that, in his view, could reduce crossovers. Darmanin will meet his counterparts from Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the EU Executive Commission in the French port of Calais on Sunday.
The five steps included joint patrols to prevent more ships from leaving French beaches starting next week, using sensors and radars, and immediate work on a return agreement with France and a similar agreement with the European Union, Johnson said.
“This would have an immediate effect and would significantly reduce, if not stop, crossings, saving lives, fundamentally breaking the business model of criminal gangs,” Johnson said in a letter he sent to Macron and posted on Twitter.
France has accused Britain of a poorly managed immigration system and said Britain is politicizing the issue of immigrants for domestic gain.
When Britain left the EU, it was no longer able to use the bloc’s system to return migrants to the first member state they entered.
The deaths deepened animosity between Britain and France, which were already at odds with trade rules and post-Brexit fishing rights.
French fishermen on Friday blocked a small British cargo ship from docking in Saint-Malo and later plan to blockade the port of Calais and the Channel Tunnel, both major trade centers between Britain and Europe.
