After much procrastination and Algeria expelling 12 French officials, Paris has decided to retaliate by recalling its ambassador and declaring 12 Algerian officials personae non gratae on French soil. Algeria has reacted by criticising the French “desire for “escalation,” but in reality the French government is simply trying to put an end to endless provocations by President Tebboune.
Algeria has followed through its threat in retaliation for the detention of an Algerian consular agent last week, suspected of being involved in the kidnapping of an Algerian national in 2024. As we reported, minister of foreign affairs Jean-Noël Barrot immediately promised a response should Algiers decide to indeed expel the French officials. On Tuesday, April 15th, the minister proceeded to recall the French ambassador to Algeria to Paris ‘for consultations’, according to the official terminology. Later on the same day, Paris also expelled “twelve agents serving in the Algerian consular and diplomatic network in France.”
After having endured multiple provocations from Algiers, the French government chose to take the path of diplomatic resistance. Invited on the CNews channel on the evening of April 15th, the minister of the interior Bruno Retailleau said he was very satisfied with this strategy and considered the response “totally appropriate,” claiming he has been “advocating firmness for months” towards Algeria, but without being heard.
Retailleau was directly targeted by President Tebboune. The Algerian president accused him of being responsible for the rise in tensions between the two countries, particularly due to the minister’s firm stance on the enforcement of ‘obligation to leave French territory’ (OQTF) orders concerning Algerian nationals.
The Rassemblement National (RN) expressed scepticism over the recalling of the ambassador and the expulsion, critiquing the method used. “They have caved in, they wanted to play nice, they have been humiliated and behaved like a carpet. Now the carpet complains about being trampled upon. I would have preferred them to speak out before being walked all over,’ RN MP Jean-Philippe Tanguy stated, voicing his doubts about the Algerian regime’s willingness to give in to French pressure.
With this latest diplomatic spat, the dispute between the two countries is escalating. The latest statement by Minister Barrot in support of Morocco against Algeria on the question of the Western Sahara, a territory claimed by both Maghreb countries, during a meeting with his Moroccan counterpart in Paris on the evening of April 14th, was yet another proof of the total divergence of views between Paris and Algiers. While Paris has finally decided to show strength, the conflict is unlikely to be resolved any soon, as Algeria is not showing willingness to take back its nationals expelled from France, or to release the Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, sentenced to prison for his criticism of the regime.
