France and Algeria announce a “renewed partnership”, after 60 years of independence

First modification: 08/27/2022 – 20:19

In the northwestern Algerian port city of Oran, President Emmanuel Macron wrapped up his three-day visit aimed at ending months of tensions with the former French colony.

It did so after the signing of a “renewed association” agreement, called the “Algiers Declaration”. This is a series of agreements reached with his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, on energy issues, migration, security, gas and hydrogen research, medical research and sports cooperation, as well as the investigation of crimes committed in colonial times.

“We had moving moments in recent days that allowed us to lay the foundations for what is to come,” Macron said this Saturday, August 27, referring to the desire for dialogue on sensitive issues such as memory or immigration. However, he acknowledged that “much remains to be done.”

The cooperation aims to improve ties with Africa’s largest nation, a major supplier of oil and gas to Europe and an influential regional military player.

“I believe that this rapprochement will allow us to go very, very far,” said Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Saturday, who described the official visit as “excellent, necessary and successful.”

The two governments are seeking rapprochement, following wounds from French colonial rule in Algeria and the bitter war of independence that ended in 1962, which have dogged relations between the two countries for decades and escalated into a diplomatic spat that erupted last year. .

Without official apology, France announces investigation into colony crimes

Sixty years after Algeria’s independence, one of the issues that has caused the most friction between the two countries dates back to the legacy of crimes committed during French rule in Algeria.

The French president did not issue an official apology for the violence denounced by Algiers, but announced the formation of a mixed commission of investigation to clarify the events that marked history.

“We are going to create a true commission of historians, we are going to open all our archives on both sides and we are going to ask them to work on the entire period, from the beginning of colonization to the end of the war,” said the Elysee leader.

The ties between Paris and Algiers suffered a strong cooling in 2021 after the dissemination of statements by the French president during a meeting with the “grandchildren” of the Algerian war.

At the time, Macron accused the Algerian “political-military system” of having rewritten the history of colonization based on “hatred” of France, sparking anger in the African nation.

But in an attempt to smooth things over, Macron had already invited on Friday to look “head-on” at the common history between the two nations, emphasizing preferring “truth” and “recognition” to a choice between “pride and repentance.”

Macron promises flexibility in issuing visas to Algeria

The French president assured that France would be more flexible in issuing visas to Algerian citizens, after a major diplomatic crisis between the two countries over this issue in the fall of last year.

“We already have 30,000 Algerian students each year, this year we have already received 8,000 more, which is an opportunity for our country, what we want is to receive these positive mobility, students, entrepreneurs (…) That they are also rigorous in the fight against clandestine migration, because deep down that is what is not discussed and that is why the relationship between Algeria and France is sometimes paralyzed”, indicated the French president.

Macron’s statements came after he decided in 2021 to drastically reduce the number of visas issued to people from North Africa, including Algeria. Paris justified the extent to which the governments of that region refused to accept the migrants expelled from French territory, which increased tensions.

Now, the two governments assure that they point to a “new and irreversible dynamic of progress”.

Economic cooperation was also a key part of the official trip, at a time when the war launched by Moscow against Ukraine has reinforced the role of the North African nation as a key supplier of energy, as European countries look for alternatives to energy. Russian.

In addition, Macron’s office added that his government would raise concerns about the human rights situation. Algeria has witnessed a growing crackdown on dissent since the pro-democracy protests in 2019.

With Reuters, AP and AFP