Tuesday marks the arrival of French President Emmanuel Macron in London for a state visit that will combine tense political discussions on immigration over the English Channel with royal spectacle.
Plans for a post-ceasefire security force in Ukraine, which the French leader had previously proposed but the US rejected, are also expected to be advanced by Macron and his British counterpart, Keir Starmer.
The first state visit to the UK by a head of state from the European Union after Brexit, Macron’s three-day tour, which King Charles III invited, is thought to be a sign of Starmer’s administration’s intention to mend fences with the union.
Thousands of migrants attempt to cross the Channel in tiny boats or hide in trucks each year to get to the UK from northern France. In retaliation, Britain and France have inked several agreements to increase coastal patrols and exchange data to break up smuggling networks.
However, the accords haven’t had much of an effect. About 37,000 persons were found to be crossing the English Channel in tiny boats in 2024, which was the second-highest number of any year after 46,000 in 2022. The number has risen in the first half of this year: over 20,000 individuals crossed in the first half of 2025, which is around 50% higher than the same time the previous year.
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