Ségolène Royal Dismisses Any Role for Macron in Improving Algerian-French Relations

Ségolène Royal, the former Socialist presidential candidate, claims that her work with the France-Algeria Association has significantly improved relations between France and Algeria over the past four months.

She said her efforts have reopened communication channels between officials from both countries. Royal made this statement on her X account late Friday night: “I would like to reiterate my efforts, on behalf of the France-Algeria association, to rebuild ties through mutual understanding and without imposing force.” This was an implicit message to unnamed figures within the French state who had fueled the crisis, though the reference was clearly to former French Prime Minister François Bayrou and his Interior Minister.

The former French minister confirmed that her “efforts have now resulted in a first positive step, which I welcome: the official recognition of the painful memory of the May 8th massacres, a recognition I reiterated last week on Algerian television during my working visit to Algiers. I was welcomed to discuss, and this is good for both our countries.”

In a related context, Ségolène Royal cautioned against using the case of French journalist Christophe Gleizes, who is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence for supporting and praising terrorism, for political gain as the 2027 presidential elections draw near within the French state apparatus.

Royal explained: “However, we must be careful not to exploit Christophe Gleizes’ name for political gain or power struggles, against his will and against his best interests. Only a presidential pardon, freely granted at his request and that of his mother, and which I have supported in writing, can free him. Any political exploitation is counterproductive and could undermine these discreet efforts, as I explained to Laurent Nuñez, who clearly understood this during his successful visit, as he imposed no conditions.”

She thus wanted to reiterate, in advance, that any progress achieved in the case of the French journalist would be thanks to her efforts on behalf of the “Algeria-France Association,” which served as a link between the two capitals when all other avenues were exhausted.

The former French minister referenced statements made by the Archbishop of Algiers in an interview with the French newspaper Le Parisien: “What Jean-Paul Vesco said about Christophe Gleizes in this excellent interview is important: he doesn’t want to be a bargaining chip. He shouldn’t be politically manipulated in a power struggle. It’s the fraternity that opposes this approach. I absolutely agree.”

She also emphasized President Abdelmadjid Tebboune’s contribution to reaching this point, retweeting a message she shared during her initial visit to Algeria on February 1st, which stated: “I would like to acknowledge President Abdelmadjid Tebboune for this significant step towards fostering friendship between Algeria and France. We discussed how to establish a new, equitable alliance based on truth, exploring our shared history and the potential for our future together.”

What stood out in Ségolène Royal’s tweets was the lack of any mention of French President Emmanuel Macron’s role in reestablishing communication between the two countries. This suggests that she implicitly holds him accountable for the current state of bilateral relations, while attributing credit solely to President Tebboune and herself, in her position as President of the France-Algeria Association.