London, September 03 (QNA) - UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham and French President Emmanuel Macron have agreed to strengthen security cooperation, with talks focusing on Ukraine, tensions in the Middle East, defense and illegal Channel crossings.

France plans to deploy an additional 45 police officers to its western coastline to disrupt people-smuggling networks and prevent boats from being launched.

Burnham said cooperation had made progress but warned that smugglers were constantly changing their tactics.

The UK government said joint efforts have helped prevent more than 68,000 attempted Channel crossings. (QNA)