Kananaskis : G7 leaders have issued a joint statement reaffirming their commitment to prevent and counter migrant smuggling, under the G7 Coalition to Prevent and Counter the Smuggling of Migrants and the 2024 G7 Action Plan to Prevent and Counter the Smuggling of Migrants.
"We are determined to enhance border management and enforcement and dismantle the transnational organised crime groups profiting from both migrant smuggling and human trafficking," the statement read.
The G7 leaders highlighted that migrant smuggling is often connected to other serious criminal offences, including money laundering, corruption, and trafficking in persons and drugs, which pose significant threats to community safety.
"It can expose vulnerable smuggled persons to grave and life-threatening risks, including physical abuse, sexual and gender-based violence, extortion, labour exploitation, and forced labour and criminality," the leaders noted.
The statement emphasised that the G7 Coalition has made concrete progress in strengthening the operational and investigative capacities of law enforcement agencies, as well as enhancing international cooperation between police, judicial, prosecution, and border services.
The G7 leaders tasked their Interior and Security Ministers to intensify work on the 2024 G7 Action Plan by focusing on four key areas. These include adopting a "follow the money" approach by leveraging financial intelligence and information-sharing to identify and hold criminal actors accountable, seize assets, and strip profits.
They also plan to boost prevention with countries of origin and transit through stronger border management and raising awareness of risks. The G7 committed to collaborating with social media companies on voluntary principles to prevent organised crime groups from using online platforms to coordinate migrant smuggling.
Another area of focus is engaging with transport operators to prevent facilitation of irregular migration and mitigate the use of migrants to destabilise or as part of hybrid warfare tactics.
The leaders added that, consistent with their legal systems, they will examine the use of sanctions against criminals involved in migrant smuggling and human trafficking operations from countries where such activities are enabled.
They committed to fostering global and regional cooperation and reaffirmed their support for legal migration pathways that reflect national interests. "We remain committed to countering all forms of abuse and exploitation of migrants, ensuring protection of the most vulnerable, including refugees and forcibly displaced persons," the statement added. The G7 leaders concluded by underlining their united resolve to combat migrant smuggling and protect vulnerable populations through coordinated international efforts.