The Algerian army seizes the main levers of state control

In recent weeks, the Algerian army (National People's Army) has carried out a veritable "soft coup" without bloodshed and without violent confrontation in the public squares, by which it has now taken over the country's main powers.

In addition to all matters concerning the armed forces, military procurement, the defence industry and the State Security Forces, the ENP controls foreign policy, budgetary policy, economic and industrial development plans, and major decisions concerning the Maghreb country's strategy and geopolitics.

All important decisions in Algeria are made in the High Security Council (HSC), the real centre of power, which the head of state Abdelmadjid Tebboune chairs with the right to vote, as do the rest of its members, along with some key government ministers (Foreign Affairs, Justice, Interior and Finance), but where the military hold the absolute majority of seats, and monopolise the decisions that are taken by majority vote.

In addition to the chief of staff, accompanied by some of his staff in the Ministry of Defence, the chiefs of arms, the heads of military regions and the heads of the secret services, all of whom are military personnel, are also present.

The High Security Council decides, and the government and other state administration bodies simply carry out its directives. Moreover, during a meeting of the Council of Ministers in September, President Tebboune prohibited the executive, the Parliament (APN) or the Senate from deciding on matters related to defence and foreign policy, in violation of the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure, Article 102 of which allows parliamentarians to address foreign policy issues at the request of the President of the Republic or the President of the Assembly (APN). This same Úkase by President Tebboune contradicts Articles 157, 158, 159 and 165 of the Magna Carta, which do not exempt the Ministry of Defence from submitting to questions from parliamentarians, as well as from the Council of Ministers.

According to sources familiar with Algerian domestic politics, it was at a meeting of the High Security Council that the Finance Law for 2023 was presented, discussed and approved, which provides for an exponential increase in the budget allocated to the defence department. Military spending will increase from the current $10 billion to $22.6 billion, according to the Mondafrique portal, which has reliable information and claims to be in possession of the 2023 Finance Act document.

The spectacular increase in military spending will allow Algeria to implement the "New Military Doctrine", which legalises direct and indirect armed intervention outside the country's borders (5 billion dollars), mainly in the countries around the Sahel, as well as military aid to the countries that are signatories of the Joint Operational Staff Committee (CEMOC) with Algeria, Niger, Mali and Mauritania, and to allocate 9 billion dollars for salaries, bonuses and different incentives for military personnel, as well as to resolve the problem of pensions and compensation for the more than 100,000 pensioners and war wounded who have been demonstrating their demands for years with marches and protests at the very doors of the presidential palace in Algiers; and the other 9 billion dollars will go to the modernisation of military equipment. These are budgets that have never before been achieved by Algeria, and which make the country the most militaristic on the African continent.

Among the objectives pursued by the ENP General Staff and the military leadership is the creation of a political-military structure led by Algiers, of which CEMOC will be the armed wing, to resolve and guarantee peace and security in the Sahel and neighbouring countries. According to French intelligence sources, this was one of the points discussed by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Chief of Staff Said Chengriha with French President Emmanuel Macron during his recent visit to Algiers. Paris abandons its military commitment to the Sahel countries, particularly Mali, and leaves Algiers in charge, giving it its blessing.

The 'soft coup' carried out by the Algerian military will loom over the next Arab League summit scheduled for 1 November in Algiers, although it is unlikely that the Arab presidents and monarchs attending the meeting will discuss the issue. Most Arab heads of state are either military men or kings, and none will want to throw stones on the other's roof.