UK to tackle Western Balkan migrant transit routes and serious organised crime with closer ties in the region
Source: gov.uk (2025-04-01)

Foreign Secretary David Lammy travels to Kosovo and Serbia to strengthen cooperation on tackling irregular migration and serious organised crime.

- new cooperation agreement with Serbia to smash the gangs at the heart of irregular migration crisis and secure UK borders ahead of hosting major Western Balkans diplomatic summit this Autumn
- UK-supplied tech used in Kosovo to stop illicit goods and vulnerable people from reaching British shores and break the model of the criminal gangs
- UK and European security also top of agenda with a visit to British troops part of NATO’s Peacekeeping mission at a time of increased volatility
Britain is taking the fight directly to people smugglers and criminal gangs who have turned the Western Balkans into a major transit route for irregular migration and serious organised crime, the Foreign Secretary will tell partners on a visit to the region this week.

With almost 22,000 people recorded using the Western Balkans to transit into Europe last year, the Foreign Secretary will meet with counterparts to strengthen UK-Serbian cooperation by signing an Organised Immigration Crime agreement, first agreed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the European Political Community.

This will mean both countries can share information more quickly and directly to combat and disrupt organised immigration crime. David Lammy will also hear directly from female survivors of human trafficking.

This forms part of the government’s approach to tackle the problem at every step of the people smuggling journey, working with neighbouring countries to combine resources and share intelligence and tactics.

Ahead of the Berlin Process Summit, a diplomatic meeting to deliver on the government’s plan for change through closer security ties and greater migration cooperation, David Lammy will see UK technology being used to detect drugs and weapons concealed in vehicles – alongside drones and cameras used to track popular smuggling routes and prevent people dangerously and illegally crossing borders.

The Foreign Secretary’s visit is the latest step to drive further action upstream and builds on the announcement of the world’s first sanction regime to target organised immigration crime.

It comes after the Prime Minister and Home Secretary hosted the Organised Immigration Crime Summit (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-hosts-first-major-international-summit-to-tackle-illegal-migration) in London this week as part of the toughest-ever international crackdown on people smuggling gangs and to deliver on working people’s priorities for secure borders.

The summit announced £30 million of funding to tackle supply chains, illicit finances and trafficking routes and an additional £3 million to enable the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to increase its capacity to prosecute organised international smugglers.

The summit also saw the Prime Minister announce that more than 24,000 people with no right to be here in the UK have been removed (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-announces-massive-surge-in-immigration-enforcement-as-returns-reach-24000-since-the-election) since July – the highest rate of returns for 8 years as the government begins to restore order to the immigration system.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said:

Criminal gangs have long exploited instability in the Western Balkans, parts of which have become a major transit route for irregular migration and serious organised crime. They are risking lives for profit and becoming increasingly violent in their determination to make as much money as possible.

This diabolical, lawless trade of smuggling vulnerable people is completely unacceptable and we are determined to end it as we secure the UK’s borders under our Plan for Change.

With the world becoming more dangerous and unpredictable, the Western Balkans is of critical importance to the UK and Europe’s collective security, and the UK remains committed to building resilience and stability in the region.

Across the region, external actors – including Russia – seek to exploit this fragility by fanning ethnic tensions, destabilising democracies and threatening the hard-won peace and stability.

UK expertise is set to strengthen the resilience of institutions against Russian and other malign influence – countering the threats of cyber-attacks, disinformation and interference in elections to stand up for freedom and democracy.

On the visit, the Foreign Secretary will sign an agreement between the UK and Serbia which underlines the shared goal of a free, open, peaceful and secure cyberspace and countering malicious cyber actors.

The UK has a longstanding role and an important legacy in promoting security in the region including in Kosovo, where it has maintained a presence through NATO’s KFOR mission since 1999. The Foreign Secretary will meet with British troops on the ground who serve in KFOR, NATO’s largest overseas mission, which contributes to maintaining a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement for all communities in Kosovo.

The UK will host a meeting of Western Balkans leaders at the Berlin Process Summit in London in Autumn 2025 (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-to-drive-international-cooperation-on-irregular-migration-as-host-of-western-balkans-summit) to support stability, security and economic co-operation, tackle gender inequality and violence against women and girls, and focus work to combat irregular migration transiting the region.

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