The French Are Seeking De-escalation With Algeria to Pave The Way For Their Next President

Events are accelerating remarkably on the Algiers-Paris axis. Among the most prominent outcomes of these developments were the return of the French ambassador, Stéphane Romatet, to his post in Algiers, and the statements made by the French Minister Delegate to the Minister of the Armed Forces, Alice Revaux, from Algiers, after being received by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, regarding the memory file.

The French official indicated that the Algerian President “expressed his approval” for the resumption of the work of the Algerian-French joint committee tasked with examining the memory file, after nearly two years of suspension, following French President Emmanuel Macron’s alignment with the Moroccan regime regarding the Western Sahara issue.

These developments coincided with leaks reported by the French newspaper “Le Journal du Dimanche” concerning the content of the message delivered by the French minister to President Tebboune from his French counterpart.

The message spoke of a French response to Algerian demands raised on several occasions, related to the nuclear test explosions in southern Algeria, which continue to pollute nature and kill humans and animals.

According to those leaks, the message included a “roadmap” proposed by the Élysée Palace to restore bilateral relations damaged by repeated French provocations. The most important point was the French side’s agreement to hand over to Algeria the maps of the nuclear tests conducted in the Algerian Sahara between 1961 and 1967, while the demand related to cleaning up the areas affected by the nuclear explosions remains under discussion within the French state apparatus.

This matter is not considered an achievement, given the sensitivity of this file, in the view of observers, as long as the French side remains hesitant to respond to the main demand of Algerians, which is France’s apology for its crimes in Algeria.

Those leaks indicated that Emmanuel Macron preferred to adopt a policy of “small steps,” and that he prefers to leave the remaining steps to future French leaders, which Algeria considers a red line.

The question that arises here is: Are the steps taken by the French side sufficient to rearrange relations with Algeria, or are they merely attempts to reduce tension and try to prepare the atmosphere for the next president of France, who will succeed Macron in the Élysée Palace next spring?

In this regard, Mohamed Khoja, former head of the Institute of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Algiers 3, leans towards the second part of the question, because the French president has only one year left in power, and he does not want to leave the Élysée Palace by leaving relations with Algeria in their worst state, which will affect his career as a president who served two terms in the Élysée.

Mr. Mohamed Khoja, commenting on the scene in a conversation with “Echorouk,” says: “I believe that Macron and the French political forces want to complicate relations with Algeria in a way that paves the way for the next president of France,” expecting that the coolness in bilateral relations will continue with a lower level of tension, but without returning to what they were in previous times, especially during the era of former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

The latter rules out the significant rapprochement that the French president is seeking in de-escalation with Algeria, saying: “Currently, there is no talk of great chances for the French president to make up for all that has been lost.” He adds: “All that matters is that France’s interest lies in fortifying its relations with Algeria, so that bilateral relations are not affected by the political spectrum that will govern France in the post-presidential election phase, about a year from now.”

Mr. Mohamed Khoja believes that French fears are great that tension between the two countries will continue, due to the specificity of bilateral relations. Anxieties dominate the ruling French elites regarding the possibility that the far-right might manipulate them if it wins the next presidential elections, which worries the Élysée Palace and pushes it to fortify and frame these relations, so that they are not subject to the whims of French political parties obsessed with Algeria.

The nature of the circumstances the world is experiencing after the Zionist-American aggression against Iran and the multiple crises it caused, foremost among them the energy crisis, contributed to pushing France to try to solve its problems with Algeria, so that it could catch up with its European neighbors, such as Italy, Spain, and Germany, who took good advantage of the situation and hastened to solidify their relations and bolster their partnership with Algeria.