The French Navy patrol boat Flamant fired 17 live rounds during a handgun training exercise in the English Channel while UK Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp was being interviewed by the BBC about cross-Channel small boat migrations.
Philp and the vessel’s captain expressed shock, stating there was no prior warning given and suggesting it felt like an act of deliberate intimidation or a warning to stop them covering migrant crossings.
French maritime authorities known as “Prefecture maritime Manche mer du Nord” denied any connection to the interview or migrant monitoring, stating the vessel was conducting a routine, pre-planned individual combat training exercise with all safety protocols and international signals respected, and that the British boat was safely out of range.
Independent naval experts and commentators noted that military vessels routinely conduct small-arms training and that the handgun appeared to be pointed in a safe direction, making intentional political intimidation unlikely.
Latest update reveals Philp rejects French claim that shots fired from naval boat near him were training exercise, not intimidation.
Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, has accused the French authorities of not telling the truth about why shots were fired from a naval vessel near a boat he was on in the Channel.
Philp said, “The French are now claiming that the shots were a training exercise…This is not credible…There were no warnings in place about live firing training exercises.
“They fired the live rounds at the closest point of approach to us, and didn’t fire anything that we saw before or after…It looked and sounded exactly like deliberate intimidation,” he added.
