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The French Foreign Minister has publicly voiced «doubts» regarding Algeria's commitment to a bilateral relations roadmap established in August 2022 during President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to Algiers. This diplomatic engagement was followed by a French delegation, led by former Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne, visiting Algeria in October of the same year.
«In 2022 (...) we drew up a roadmap (...), and we want it to be followed,» stated Jean-Noël Barrot in an interview with French media on Sunday, as reported by excerpts published in Le Figaro. «We are observing postures and decisions on the part of the Algerian authorities that give us reason to doubt the Algerians' intention to stick to this roadmap. Because it takes two to stick to the roadmap,» he lamented.
Relations between Paris and Algiers have been on the verge of collapse since France acknowledged Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara on July 30. In retaliation, President Tebboune ordered the withdrawal of the Algerian ambassador from France. The arrest of French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal on November 16 has further exacerbated tensions between the two nations.
France's top officials have been urging the release of the 75-year-old Franco-Algerian writer, but Algeria has so far disregarded these appeals. In a speech to both Houses of Parliament on Sunday, December 29, 2024, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune intensified the situation by accusing Sansal of being an «impostor sent by France». The following day, Ahmed Attaf criticized France and Spain for allegedly supporting «the Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara».
