Algeria denies trade blockade on France
Algeria's alleged trade blockade of France in response to France's decision to support Morocco's autonomy plan for Western Sahara has generated controversy in Algeria.
France took the decision in the summer to support Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara, a territory claimed by the Moroccan kingdom as part of its southern provinces. French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed this supportive stance during his recent state visit to Rabat, which took place at the express invitation of King Mohammed VI.
Now, Algeria has denied reports that the restrictive measures decreed on trade with France were ‘unfounded’, a measure that would have come as punishment for France's support for the Moroccan kingdom on the Western Sahara issue.
Various sources had indicated that the Algerian state had decreed a trade blockade on France to punish the French position of supporting the Moroccan kingdom's sovereignty proposal on Western Sahara, which has been backed by more than 100 countries at the international level.
Algeria had already imposed the same punitive measure against Spain in June 2022 to punish the Spanish government of Pedro Sánchez, which recognised Morocco's initiative for broad autonomy for Western Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty as the most serious, credible and realistic way to resolve the Saharawi dispute. The Association of Banks and Financial Institutions of Algeria (ABEF) in June 2022 called for the ‘freezing of direct debits of foreign trade operations of products and services to and from Spain’, as punishment for Spain's support for the Moroccan kingdom on the Saharawi issue.
Recently, the Bank of Algeria announced the lifting of the measures that still affected certain imports and exports with Spain (some sectors no longer had these impediments, such as certain foodstuffs or cement), ordering Algerian financial institutions to take this into account in order to allow Spanish-Algerian transactions.
In the case of France, Algeria has once again denied reports that it is imposing restrictive measures on trade with France.
The Algerian government issued a communiqué describing as ‘unfounded’ all reports in the media about the alleged blocking of Franco-Algerian trade.
The Algerian Prime Minister's office attributed this to former French ambassador to Algiers Xavier Driencourt, accusing the diplomat of presenting an ‘odious narrative’.
‘To thank France, Algeria has decided to block all French imports and exports to France. We are truly blind,’ the former ambassador wrote on the social network X on 5 November.
Media outlets such as Le Figaro reported on Algeria's threats to suspend trade relations with France, following renewed tensions over the Western Sahara dispute.
Le Figaro warned of ABEF's intention to order local banks to stop processing import and export transactions to and from France.
The Algerian regime, however, claimed that this is ‘completely false information’ and added that the statements are part of the ‘misleading accusations spread by the former French ambassador in Algiers, in his usual hateful delirium towards Algeria’.
Relations between France and Algeria are not at their best, especially after France's decision to recognise Morocco's sovereignty over its southern provinces of Western Sahara.
Algeria rejects the Moroccan proposal for Western Sahara and defends the opposing postulates of the Polisario Front, which advocates holding a referendum on the independence of the Sahrawi people, which is difficult to implement due to various problems such as the drawing up of an electoral roll, as it would be necessary to determine which Sahrawis vote and which do not, since several communities are in Moroccan territory and others in refugee camps such as those of Tindouf in Algerian territory, as various analysts have explained.
Western Sahara is a territory of great importance. Emmanuel Macron said that his country's position is not hostile to any of the parties, in reference to the Algerian-Moroccan standoff, adding that operators and companies will support Morocco's southern provinces through investments, sustainable initiatives and solidarity for the benefit of local populations.
Among them is the French Development Agency (AFD), which, according to France, will invest in Morocco's southern provinces.
‘We see Morocco as a bridge to African countries,’ AFD director general Remy Rioux told the Moroccan news agency in a recent interview.
Internal dissension in Algeria
Various reports suggest that there are internal rifts within the Algerian state over the issue of trade reprisals that Algiers could impose on Paris.
Internal dissension within the Algerian regime has reportedly manifested itself over the issue of trade relations with France, according to various sources. Although the Algiers authorities have strongly denied the formalisation of trade restrictions, the debate remains both political and economic, and reveals a deep rift between different influential factions within the Algerian state.
The controversy began with claims by former French ambassador to Algiers Xavier Driencourt that Algeria's alleged trade punishment of France would result in millions of dollars in losses for companies from both nations, as in the case of the interruption of trade between Algeria and Spain.
This alludes to internal differences over the management of trade relations with France, following Paris' official support for Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara.
While Algiers has officially denied Xavier Driencourt's claims of restrictive measures on Franco-Algerian trade, signs of a real rift have appeared in the first circles of power, according to various sources.
The issue is important because the figures speak for themselves: in 2023, trade between France and Algeria reached 11.8 billion euros, an increase of 5.3% compared to 11.2 billion euros in 2022. Algeria remains the second largest African market for France, behind Morocco, and accounts for around 18% of French exports to the continent.
French exports to Algeria amount to 4.49 billion euros, while imports of Algerian goods to France amount to 7.3 billion euros, 85% of which are hydrocarbons and derived products.
A blockade imposed on the Algerian-French trade relationship would be very bad news for Algerian coffers, and this is divisive and controversial. Despite Algeria's alleged intention to punish Paris for France's support for Morocco's Western Sahara proposal.
There could be a camp of supporters of a pragmatic economic policy, mainly within the civilian sphere, who would reject restrictions on trade with France because of the economic losses it would entail.
Technocrats and heads of economic ministries, such as the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Trade, stress the negative repercussions of direct trade sanctions.
On the other hand, there are other positions more inclined to defend Algeria's immovable thesis on Western Sahara, which entails a total rejection of French support for Morocco's sovereignty over the Sahrawi territory. A sphere that could include an important sector of power in Algeria, for example, part of the army, an institution with great power within the Algerian state apparatus, or the intelligence services. They would see trade sanctions as a necessary way to punish France.