How Does the French Right Plan to Abort Reconciliation With Algeria?

Even after Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, committed to appeasement through a joint statement issued last Monday, the French right, both traditional and extremist, insists on poisoning the atmosphere ahead of the French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot’s visit to Algeria this Sunday, April 6.

The most serious provocation recorded since last Monday (the date the joint statement embodying the appeasement was published) was the actions of French Senator Valérie Boyer, a member of the Republicans (LR) party, which the current French Interior Minister, Bruno Retailleau, aims to lead at the upcoming congress next May.

In this regard, Valérie Boyer received Ferhat Mehenni, the leader of the terrorist organization MAK, and his deputy, Axel Belabbes, in the French Senate on Thursday, according to a tweet she posted on her X account, accompanied by a picture of her with the two leaders of the terrorist organization in the Senate lobby. She expressed her satisfaction at receiving the two individuals sentenced by the Algerian judicial authorities for harming Algeria’s territorial integrity through inciting, praising and planning terrorist acts.

What’s interesting about the tweet is that it insists on undermining Algeria’s territorial integrity by affirming its support for the two individuals convicted of terrorism and their project that targets territorial integrity. It’s worth noting that the Algerian authorities have submitted a request for the extradition of the two leaders of this terrorist organization. This issue is expected to be discussed with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot during his upcoming visit to Algeria this Sunday, April 6.

Valérie Boyer is considered very close to French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau and is a strong supporter of his activities in the race for the leadership of the Republicans (LR) party at its congress, which is about a month away. This race will pit Retailleau against his rival Laurent Wauquiez. Her support for the Interior Minister can be seen in her X account’s posts.

Receiving two leaders of a terrorist organization wanted by Algerian justice in a sovereign institution in France, such as the Senate, constitutes an outright provocation, especially since this deeply provocative political act comes on the eve of the anticipated visit of French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot to Algeria. This appears to be a direct attempt to thwart Barrot’s visit and, consequently, de-escalate the tensions between the Algerian and French presidents.

On the same day that Senator Valérie Boyer received fugitives wanted by Algerian justice, her party colleague and preferred candidate for leadership of the Republicans, Bruno Retailleau, made statements no less provocative than the senator’s. In addition to accusing Algeria of refusing to receive its nationals—a broken record, as Algeria did not refuse to receive them, but rather demanded that Paris respect established procedures and the 1974 consular cooperation agreements, in addition to enabling them to exercise their right to exhaust legal proceedings, he brazenly spoke of the necessity of releasing the Franco-Algerian writer, Boualem Sansal, who was sentenced to five years in prison for serious crimes to which he openly confessed.

What is strange about the minister’s controversial remarks is that he speaks of the necessity of releasing Sansal, at a time when he is hosting the leaders of a terrorist organization at a French sovereign institution, and at a time when French justice is refusing to extradite fugitive Algerian minister, Abdeslam Bouchouareb, who has been implicated in inflicting huge losses on the national economy by engineering a shameful specifications book for the Renault company, which ceased operations in Algeria by a decision of the Algerian authorities in 2020. This constitutes blatant interference in the country’s internal affairs and belittles judicial rulings in Algeria, while elevating the status of the French judiciary.