Eritrea has hit back at Britain after London warned Asmara of a complete visa ban.
Britain wants Eritrea to take back convicted criminals and irregular migrants, with Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood saying if Asmara does not agree, London will impose a total ban.
Mahmood told The Telegraph that Eritrea had been given “every chance” to cooperate but had not done so.
The decision follows deals with the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola and Namibia to take back irregular migrants.
The Home Office said Eritreans were the most common nationality arriving by small boat in the year to June 2026. It accused Asmara of “abruptly” withdrawing cooperation this year, which the Eritrean Embassy said it “categorically” rejects.
Visa restrictions
Mahmood said from Thursday 15 October, Britain would end fast-track visas for Eritrean officials.
Eritrean diplomats will also face movement restrictions, with travel beyond 60 kilometres from London requiring authorisation.
The warning prompted an angry reaction from Eritrea. Its embassy in London said it rejected “forced return” and had sought “constructive discussion” on the “dignified return” of its citizens, but London had sown showing “no interest” in dialogue.
It accused Britain of seeking to “politicise” its asylum system and extend “blanket asylum” to anyone claiming to be Eritrean to “undermine” Asmara.
The embassy said the UK had “not issued a single visa” to an Eritrean official since 2023 and called the move a “political gimmick”.
Bigger crisis
Home Office figures show more than 80% of Eritrean asylum seekers receive a positive response.
President Isaias Afwerki has governed Eritrea since independence from Ethiopia in 1993. Indefinite military service under his rule has prompted many young people to flee.
The row comes amid a wider migration crisis in the UK, with small boat crossings straining the asylum system.
Britain is still dealing with the fallout from a botched 2022 deal to transfer migrants to Kigali, pursued by Conservative prime ministers Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak. By the time Labour under Keir Starmer scrapped the deal in 2024, £700 million had been spent, including £240 million paid to Rwanda for flights that never left.
Only four migrants were voluntarily relocated, which the Labour government called the “most shocking waste” of money.
