London and Berlin intensify joint efforts against illegal migration and criminal smuggling gangs.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has called for deeper international cooperation to strengthen Britain’s border security, as she travels to Berlin this week for high-level talks with German officials.
The visit marks a renewed push by both the UK and Germany to dismantle people-smuggling networks operating across Europe. Nearly 200 suspected smugglers have been arrested over the past year in joint operations led by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and European partners.
In meetings with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, Cooper is expected to emphasise the need for “all necessary measures” to combat organised immigration crime—from intercepting small boats heading for the Channel to strengthening international legal tools that address modern migration challenges.
A key focus of the discussions will be Germany’s forthcoming legislation to criminalise the storage of small boats by smuggling gangs. The law, agreed as part of the Kensington Treaty signed in July, is set to pass through the German Parliament by Christmas. Once enacted, it will allow German police and the UK’s NCA to launch coordinated action against warehouses and supply chains used by trafficking networks.
The Foreign Secretary said the new law would represent a major step forward in disrupting smuggling operations:
“Together with Germany we are taking new action to stop illegal small boat crossings, strengthen border security, and go after the criminal smuggler gangs storing boats and equipment in German warehouses.”
The government argues that such reforms are crucial to restoring public confidence in the asylum system, alongside domestic measures designed to deter illegal migration. Ministers say nearly 50,000 people with no right to remain in the UK have been returned since the current government took office.
Recent joint operations highlight the scale of cooperation between the two countries. Last month, NCA officers arrested a suspected senior figure in a Syrian smuggling network in Manchester—an individual also wanted in Germany on 17 charges. Earlier in November, UK officers assisted German authorities in dismantling an Iraqi-run smuggling ring, seizing 21 boats, 24 engines, and a cache of life jackets, pumps and cash.
Cooper’s visit will also address wider European security concerns, including countering Russian hybrid threats. She is expected to announce new UK measures targeting underground cybercriminal groups linked to Russia.
The talks form part of the annual UK-Germany Strategic Dialogue, building on the momentum of the Kensington Treaty and ahead of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s State Visit to the UK in December. Both countries remain aligned in their support for Ukraine, working through the G7 and the “Coalition of the Willing” to increase pressure on Russia and restrict its access to military resources.
The UK continues to expand its international efforts against organised immigration crime, with new returns agreements in place with Vietnam, Iraq and France and strengthened partnerships across the Western Balkans. Photo by Jorge Royan, Wikimedia commons.