On Wednesday (August 9), the UK and Turkey released a joint statement, signaling they had agreed to "enhance cooperation on tackling the illegal movement of migrants." The deal includes the UK's support for a new center based in Turkey, which is to be established by Turkey's national police force.

The new police hub is expected to act as an operational "center of excellence" to tackle organized immigration crime. The exact figure of funding tied to the deal has not yet been announced.

UK Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick told the right-wing broadcaster GB News that he wouldn't reveal how much funding there was because it was "not primarily about money" but about sharing information.

Jenrick has visited several countries in the last few months, including Italy, Tunisia and Belgium, in hopes of beginning negotiations to establish similar partnerships in those countries.

'Absolutely critical' to work with Turkey, says UK Minister

Jenrick told the BBC on Wednesday (August 9) that the UK government believed it was "absolutely critical" to work with Turkey because of its geopolitical position on the cusp of Europe and Asia.

In a tweet on August 9, Jenrick said that Britain needed "a network of allies to dismantle a network of people smugglers. Today Britain and Turkey cement ourselves at the forefront of this work."

He added the UK wanted to "go beyond the goal line of northern France to smash the gangs before they're in striking distance of the UK."

Networks are necessary to break smuggling rings

In a statement published by the UK government, the two countries say that migration without papers has increased of late due to a rise in armed conflicts, instability and economic hardship.

They acknowledge that "international, regional and bilateral cooperation is necessary to manage irregular migration and to combat criminal networks that take advantage of vulnerable migrants risking their lives by undertaking perilous journeys."

Also read: Inside France's battle against migrant smugglers

The two countries have underlined their commitment to work together in the field of migration and to continue strengthening their cooperation with countries of both origin and transit. Through the center, they said they hoped to "prevent irregular migratory movements and combat migrant smuggling and human trafficking."

The UK and Turkey have also scheduled a migration dialogue meeting in the autumn in London.

Turkish authorities accused of heavy-handed tactics

Turkey and the UK already have existing cooperation on the issue of migration. The British newspaper The Guardian found that in 2022, the Home Office gave more than £3 million (about €3.5 million) in funding to Turkish border forces to try to prevent migrant crossings.

In 2022, Turkey claims to have turned back a total of 238,448 migrants at its border with Iran. There have been many reports of violence and force being used against these mainly Afghan migrants attempting to cross this border into Turkey.

According to video evidence seen by the Guardian, the authorities are even thought to have used live rounds of ammunition to force people to flee. Allegations of beatings using rifle butts, robberies and various humilitation tactics are attributed to authorities on both sides of this border.

Tackling the issue of small boats and boat parts

Despite such evidence of abuse taking place at the hands of border authorities, Britain said it hoped to deploy some of its own police officers to Turkey to help enable the National Crime Agency and Home Office to collaborate even more with their Turkish counterparts, reported the BBC.

The new deal will also allow for carrying out joint police operations against smuggling rings and the trade in boat parts -- a key concern for the British side.

Britain's Home Secretary Suella Braverman told a press conference that "our partnership with Turkey, a close friend and ally, will enable our law enforcement agencies to work together on this international problem and tackle the small boat supply chain."

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has promised to "stop the [small] boats" as one of his five key pledges for next year's general election.

According to the Home Office, small boats and parts for them are often transported from Turkey across Europe to be used by smugglers for irregular migration across the English Channel.

The Home Office told the BBC that the export of the small boats and parts were "a vital element of the smugglers' tactics."

Returns not part of the deal

Just last week, however, ahead of the deal being announced, the Turkish government was reported repeating statements it had already made in 2022, when it said it would not enter any deals designed to take back third country nationals, who may have traveled through Turkey before reaching Britain.

The deal also doesn't allow the UK to return failed Turkish asylum seekers, reported the BBC. To the end of July, Home Office figures show that 1,486 Turkish nationals crossed the Channel in small boats to the UK -- with many of them having little prospects of being granted asylum.

But a rejected asylum claim does not necessarily mean deportation right away. In 2022, the UK returned only 191 Turkish nationals to Turkey.

Turkish national were the second most common nationality to come to the UK across the Channel last year after Afghans, reported the BBC.

The numbers of those leaving Turkey for Britain began to increase steadily after the multiple earthquakes that occurred on the Turkish Syrian borders in February this year. The earthquakes have left at least 1.5 million people homeless, and even six months after they occurred, many are still living in temporary accommodation near the rubble of their broken former homes.

The Turkish economic crisis has also worsened in the last year, with inflation hovering around 50%, reported the BBC.

Trade agreements as extension of deal

The agreement also paves the way for better trade relations between the two countries, with a faster exchange of data on customs, reports the news agency Reuters.

In mid-July, Britain announced that it was about to begin talks with Turkey concerning a new free trade deal. Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch told Reuters that the two countries already had a trading relationship worth around £23.5 billion pounds (€27.3 billion).

Badenoch said she hoped the deal would further the UK-Turkey trading relationship and help drive economic growth.

With Reuters, AFP