Algeria Recalls Ambassador to France Over Macron’s Comments

The Algerian Embassy in France is located in Paris. (Creative Commons) 

Algeria recalled its ambassador to France on October 2 after French President Emmanuel Macron questioned the existence of an Algerian state before French colonization and accused the former colony’s history of being “totally rewritten” in order to spark a “discourse of hatred towards France.” The following day, Algeria banned French military aircraft from entering its airspace.

Macron made these statements during a lunch with descendants of the Harkis, Algerian soldiers who fought alongside the French in the Algerian War of Independence, which resulted in more than a million Algerian casualties. An unnamed Algerian minister accused Macron of making these statements because he wants to secure political support from the far right. France’s presidential election will be held next April. 

Spokesman for the French Military Colonel Pascal Ianni stated that the military aircraft ban in Algerian airspace will not affect “operations and intelligence mission conducted by France in the Sahel region.” Operation Barkhane, France’s counterterrorism military presence in the Sahel, has been ongoing since 2014. 

In addition to the statements made at the Harki lunch, France announced on September 28 that it will begin limiting the number of visas issued to citizens of Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco. The government blamed the lack of cooperation between the African countries and France, referencing the return of rejected French asylum seekers, as the main reason for the visa limitation. The Algerian Foreign Ministry delivered a note of formal protest to the French Embassy in Algiers the next day. 

Although the Algerian government has not explicitly stated the reason behind recalling its ambassador to France, Macron’s statements and the visa dispute reignite tensions and add to Algeria’s perceived animosity towards France. In recalling the ambassador, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune released a statement accusing France of genocide. Growing tension has marked French-Algerian relations since Algeria’s independence, but current events have only exacerbated such strained relations. 

While on a visit to Mali, Algerian Minister of Foregin Affairs Ramtane Lamamra said that France must “unconditionally respect African countries and accept an equal partnership with the countries of the continent.” The events of the past weeks are not isolated: Algeria previously recalled its ambassador to France in May 2020 after a French television station aired a series of documentaries covering the 2019 Hirak protest movement, which deposed longtime Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika. 

The breakdown in French-Algerian relations represents a larger trend in French relations with former colonies. The Africa-France Summit in Montpelier on October 8 was the first since 1973 to not host any African heads of state. While Algeria still has strong economic ties with France, it has culturally ‘Arabized’ in recent years. The Algerian government removed mandatory French education in schools and formed stronger economic ties with other countries in the Islamic world. While the current dispute between the two countries may be resolved in the coming weeks, it continues to highlight sentiments that France is out of touch with and patronizing toward its former colonies.