France condemns Farage-led plan to deploy British navy against Channel migrants
Paris warns pushback operation would breach international law as hard-right party vows to return small boats
France on Monday condemned a proposal by hard-right Reform UK party to launch, if it wins power, “the largest military operation” in the Channel “since World War II” to stop migrants crossing on small boats.
The party’s leader, Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage, at a press conference unveiled a policy to deploy Britain’s Royal Navy to return small boats to France.
But the French interior ministry said that the plan “would be a violation of French sovereignty as well as a violation of maritime law and international law”.
The proposal comes days after tens of thousands of migrants entered the Spanish territory of Ceuta in north Africa from neighbouring Morocco, reigniting Europe’s debate over irregular migration.
“What happened in Ceuta over the weekend shows you just how serious this situation is,” Farage told a press conference unveiling the new policy.
Farage wrote on X that “humanitarian missions do not violate maritime or international law”, and the party defiantly vowed to “stand up for British interests”, whether French President Emmanuel Macron “likes it or not”.