The UK government has sanctioned people smuggling gangs exploiting the Western Balkans route. Financiers supplying small boat equipment to smugglers are also targeted, as part of its efforts to tackle organised immigration crime.
Sanctioned groups include Balkan-based criminal gangs involved in selling fake passports. Additionally, a shadowy financial network supplying small boat engines has been targeted.
Gang members and shadowy financiers enabling the vile people-smuggling trade were banned from travelling to the UK. This includes a Kosovan passport forgery ring. They were frozen out of the UK’s financial system. This restricts their ability to facilitate people-smuggling to the UK.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: There is a criminal route through the Western Balkans bringing illegal migrants to the UK, and we’re determined to shut it down by working with European partners.
“Our joint efforts have already halved irregular border crossings. They also cut Albanian small boat arrivals by 95%. Through a new Joint Migration Taskforce and British drones, we’re going after the smuggling gangs at every stage. Our sanctions are tougher to put them out of business and deliver security for working people,” he concluded.
Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper said: “The Western Balkans is a major transit route for ruthless people-smuggling gangs who trade in human suffering.
“Our world-leading sanctions regime is a crucial tool in pursuing gangs who operate beyond our borders. It exposes the shadowy networks that prop them up. Working alongside our partners in the region, we are taking decisive action. Our goal is to secure our borders and make us stronger here at home,” she noted.
UK Government Crackdown on Criminal Networks
The sanctions are the latest step in a crackdown by the UK government and partners on the criminal networks that drive illegal migration to the UK. These actions have seen the number of migrants recorded by Frontex as transiting through the Western Balkans drop from over 140,000 in 2022 to just over 21,000 in 2024.
The latest targets are the Krasniqi forgery network, a Kosovo-based criminal gang who ran a sophisticated forgery lab. They produced fake documents. Nusret Seferović, whose gang supplied fake Croatian passports to Balkan gangs, has also been sanctioned.
The UK will additionally sanction several international financiers for their role in supporting people-smugglers, including the ALPA Trading FZCO, which processes money for smuggling gangs.
