Rabat – France and Algeria continue to experience daunting challenges in their relationship, from a row over a deported influencer to foreign policy – particularly since Paris decided to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over its southern provinces in the Western Sahara in July.
Tensions have reached a worsening stage, with French officials calling for strict measures in response to Algeria’s latest maneuvers – particularly its decision to reject the return of an Algerian influencer that Paris deported. The influencer was arrested on the grounds of inciting hate speech on social media.
The French government perceived Algeria’s move as an attempt to escalate tensions and undermine the European country, and this altercation has led to deeper mobility concerns for Algerian officials wishing to go to France.
On Sunday, Minister of Justice Gerald Darmanin conveyed his government’s frustration, saying that he wanted to “eliminate” the 2013 French-Algerian agreement that allowed Algerian officials to travel to France without a visa.
“There is a 2013 agreement, which is a governmental agreement that allows those with an official or diplomatic Algerian passport – thousands of them – to come to France without a visa and circulate freely,” Darmanin said on LCI broadcast channel.
He added that targeting the “leaders, or most of the Algerian leaders who are in decision-making positions of humiliation….seems more intelligent, more effective, and it can be done very quickly.”
In their initial response to the influencer affair, French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau accused Algeria of attempting to “humiliate” France, adding in a statement that the European country “reached an extremely concerning threshold with Algeria.”
“France cannot tolerate this situation. While maintaining our composure, we must now evaluate all means at our disposal regarding Algeria,” he said.
The Algerian Foreign Ministry responded to France’s accusation, stating that the North African country is “not, in any way, engaged in a logic of escalation, outbidding, or humiliation.”
The Algerian ministry also attacked the French government, accusing “vengeful and hateful far-right figures and their licensed herald within the French government” of carrying out a “disinformation campaign, or even mystification, against Algeria.”
