Algeria warns of an ‘irreparable split’ with France
The Algerian president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, denounced a ‘toxic climate’ in relations with Paris and established conditions for resuming dialogue.
In an interview with the newspaper L'Opinion, in which he addressed several issues, such as the situation in Syria, Ukraine and the conditions for normalisation with Israel, President Tebboune affirmed that the climate with Paris ‘is disastrous’. ‘We are wasting time with President Macron’, stressing that his objective is to avoid ‘an irreparable separation’ with France.
‘There is no progress, except in trade relations. Political dialogue is practically suspended,’ added Tebboune, lamenting ‘the daily hostile statements’ of the French authorities.
Since last summer, relations between France and Algeria have deteriorated following Paris' announcement of its support for Rabat's autonomy plan for Western Sahara. In addition, in recent weeks, tensions between Paris and Algeria have intensified following the arrest of the writer Boualem Sansal in Algeria and several influential Algerian figures in France, accused of inciting violence.
In view of the deterioration of relations, Tebboune said he ‘fully agreed’ that dialogue should be resumed, as the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, had already pointed out. However, he emphasised the need for firm political statements in this regard, stressing the importance of ‘the French president, intellectuals and advocates of the relationship making their voices heard’.
‘It is not for me to do so. For me, the French Republic is, above all, its president,’ added the Algerian president, without going into further detail.
When asked about the writer Boualem Sansal, detained in Algeria since mid-November, Tebboune considered that ‘it is not an Algerian problem, but one for those who created it’, also indicating that ‘other cases of people with dual nationality are’, although he warned that these do not attract as much solidarity.
For his part, last week, the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, declared that he was ‘willing to go to Algeria to discuss all issues, not just those that have made headlines in recent weeks’, emphasising that ‘France and Algeria have no interest in continuing the tension between them’.
In this sense, the French Defence Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, also urged ‘reconstruction of the relationship’ currently tense between Algeria and France, expressing his regret at the policies of the Algerian government.
Lecornu regretted that ‘hatred of France has become a matter of domestic politics’ in Algeria and said that ‘it is necessary to get out of this situation’. ‘We are wasting time, also in the fight against terrorism,’ he added, especially in the Sahel countries.
On the other hand, in addition to the situation with France, the Algerian president commented on recent events in Syria, stating that his country had informed former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad ‘in no uncertain terms’ of its permanent rejection of the massacres against the Syrian people.
He recalled that Algeria, which ‘opposed Syria's return to the Arab League in 2022’, as it supported ‘political dialogue as a solution to the crisis’ in that country.
With regard to the war between Israel and Hamas, Tebboune stated that he is not opposed to the normalisation of relations with Israel, indicating that this could happen ‘on the same day that a fully-fledged Palestinian state is established’.
The interview also addressed the crisis in Ukraine, where it was revealed that Kiev did not respond to Algeria's offer of mediation in its conflict with Russia.