In the timeline of the crisis between Paris and Algiers that began in the summer of 2024, what significance should be given to the initiative taken by Emmanuel Macron on August 6? Two weeks after Le Figaro published the French president’s letter to his prime minister, instructing him to act “with greater firmness and determination toward Algeria,” the full impact remained difficult to gauge. Still, the bilateral relationship, which deteriorated after France recognized “Moroccan sovereignty” over Western Sahara on July 30, 2024, before further incidents worsened the dialogue between the two countries, has entered a new phase.
For the first time since taking office, Macron has opted for strength against Algeria. He urged the prime minister to suspend the 2013 agreement on visa exemptions for diplomatic and official passports, demanded the replacement of about 60 French consular staff whom he said were being blocked by the Algerian authorities, and made the accreditation of Algerian consuls appointed in France contingent upon the full resumption of migration cooperation.
You have 83.56% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.
