French foreign minister to visit Algeria for second time in a week

The secret visit that led French foreign intelligence official Nicolas Lerner to Algeria, as reported by Le Figaro, seems to have led to no result in terms of de-escalation between Algeria and Paris, which took unprecedented turns, following the arbitrary expulsion of influencer Boualem, which was met with a stern response from Algeria.

Since the incident of France’s illegal deportation of influencer Boualem and Algeria’s refusal to receive him and return him on the plane that took him, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot has twice offered to visit Algeria to resolve the contentious issues, but so far (a week has passed), Algeria has not declared its willingness to receive him.

On Wednesday, before members of the French National Assembly (the lower chamber of parliament), the French foreign minister reiterated his willingness to visit Algeria to de-escalate the situation: “I am ready to go to Algeria to address all issues and not just the ones that are making the news these days. “It is not in Algeria’s interest nor in France’s interest for the pressure to continue. They are big neighbors in the Mediterranean.”

On Thursday, immediately after Algeria’s refusal to receive the influencer Boualem, who was deported from France outside the decisions of justice, Barrot made statements in which he expressed his country’s adherence to the relationship with Algeria, including: “We are open to a frank and firm dialogue, but dialogue requires two.” He addressed the Algerian side, saying: “If the Algerian authorities invite me, I am ready to go there and deal with all these topics, all these issues, one by one, frankly and firmly.”

In his speech to French parliamentarians, Barrot reiterated the specificity of the relationship with Algeria: “Algerian-French relations are not bilateral. It is a deep and intimate relationship, as described by the French president. In August 2022, the French and Algerian presidents signed a roadmap that defined the limits of cooperation between the two countries. Cooperation requires two parties,” the French official said, alluding to the lack of response from the Algerian side.

The French official seemed to have sensed the weight of the French sin that led to the collapse of relations between the two countries, namely French President Emmanuel Macron’s provocative position in support of the alleged sovereignty of the Alaouite regime in Rabat over Western Sahara, where he spoke about his country’s sovereignty to establish relations with Morocco without interference from Algeria, and the same is the case for the Alaouite Kingdom.

While defending the release of the French writer Boualem Sansal on the grounds that the justifications for his imprisonment were “unfounded,” he believes that the refusal to receive the influencer “Boualem” by the Algerian authorities is a violation of the provisions of an agreement between the two countries, according to his claim.

In a strong indication of the failure of the visit of the French envoy to Algeria, represented by French foreign intelligence official Nicolas Lerner, last Monday, as reported Tuesday by Le Figaro, Jean-Noël Barrot said that the French president and Prime Minister François Bayrou will call a meeting in the coming days, including “the relevant ministers to assess the measures to be taken.