Rishi Sunak issues warning over ‘unprecedented threat’ putting security at risk
President of Moldova Maia Sandu welcomes Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to the EPC summit
PA
Rishi Sunak is set to call for greater cooperation with European partners over illegal migration, as he meets with European leaders at a summit in Moldova today.
Citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the issue of “organised immigration crime”, the Prime Minister will announce a new intelligence sharing partnership with Bulgaria to clamp down on criminal gangs, and set in motion a new foreign nationals returns agreement with Moldova.
Sunak will add: “We cannot address these problems without Europe’s government and institutions working closely together.
“In every meeting, every summit, every international gathering like this, the security of our borders must be top of the agenda.
Mimi Castle in Moldova hosts the EPC summit today
PA
"The UK will be at the heart of this international effort to stop the boats and defend our national security.”
Nearly 50 European leaders from inside and outside the EU that make up the European Political Community (EPC) will meet for about 20 miles from the Ukrainian border at Mimi Castle in Moldova, whose cellar can store 300,000 litres of wine.
It is the second sitting of the EPC summit, with Liz Truss attending the inaugural gathering in the Czech Republic last October, while the UK is preparing to host the next EPC summit in 2024.
A European Research Group (ERG) source told GB News: "Perhaps, the penny is finally dropping in No10 about how important the topic of illegal migration will be at the General Election."
Rishi Sunak is set to open negotiations with Moldova over an illegal migration returns agreement
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The ERG source added: "It is about time we flush Labour out on their position and finally start to tackle the despicable trade of human trafficking head on."
The UK currently has four return agreements in existence, with India, Serbia, Albania, and an agreement with Georgia coming into force today, which allow the UK to send back foreign nationals found in violation of immigration law.
Home Office statistics state that 17 Moldovans were detected arriving ‘irregularly’ in the UK between January 2018 and March 2023, of which four arrived on small boats.
In March, foreign secretary James Cleverly announced £10million for Moldova to spur economic and governance reforms with a focus on the energy sector.
President of Moldova Maia Sandu has also welcomed President of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to the EPC
PA
The largest event to be held in Moldova since it declared independence from Russia in 1991, security at the European Political Community summit is reported to be stringent with only a select few trains running to the castle.
Moldovans have been given the day off work but are required to carry permits to leave their homes, Moldovan airspace has been closed and Nato surveillance planes are said to be on standby.
Rishi Sunak and the Prime Minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, are also set to hold a roundtable discussion on security in Europe.
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