France - Morocco - Algeria

 

While France's Macron visits Morocco, Algeria is looking to other partners

French President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to Morocco is being closely followed in Algeria, where his position on Western Sahara is widely criticised.

With Macron's recent choice in favour of Morocco as its main partner in the Maghreb, the French president's visit to Rabat is being followed with a certain amount of suspicion in Algeria.

Algiers has cut its diplomatic relations with its western neighbour in 2021.

And in July this year, the authorities recalled their ambassador in Paris, after Macron publicly supported Morocco's sovereignty on Western Sahara.

This week, he reiterated his support directly to the King, on Moroccan soil. 

Algerian journalist Adlene Meddi said that Macron's attempt at a balanced Maghreb policy did not last long in the face of pressure from pro-Moroccan interest centres in France...

"France is sacrificing its relations with Algeria in a rather brutal and spectacular manner," he said, "and we are going to enter a new phase of crisis that will last much longer than other crises."

This opinion seems to be shared by the general public. 

Khalil Abdelmalek, a student of political sociology, believes that Paris is violating international law, as most Sarahwis and the UN recommend and expect a referendum on self-determination for the region.

"The French President deliberately ignores the aspirations of the Sahrawi people", the student said.

French support for Morocco reinforces the image of France as a state ready to sacrifice the principles of justice for its strategic interests, he and many other Algerians think.

This visit also comes at a time when Morocco is experiencing growing popular anger due to the high cost of living, unemployment, and a growing support from the royal family to Israel, while a large part of the population is pro-Palestinian.

New partnerships

The rift between Algeria and France is growing with Macron's obvious support to Rabat, but it has also endured for decades, more or less bitterly.

To mark a definite rupture, Algeria is now building new alliances, in the Maghreb with Libya and Tunisia, in an attempt to isolate Morocco in the region, and further in the Arab world.

Algerian President Abdelmajid Tebboune travelled to Egypt this week for his first foreign trip after his re-election last September.

After a two-day working stay in Cairo, he travelled to the Sultanate of Oman, for a three-day state visit. 

In these countries, the Algerian head of state seeks to consolidate bilateral relations and push them to a strategic level, which should allow Algeria to diversify its partners.

At a joint press conference on Monday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi assured his Algerian counterpart that Egyptian companies are ready to work on infrastructure projects in Algeria and build new cities, like those built around Cairo.

Investments will also take place in the energy sector. 

Contrary to France, Algeria is preparing to adopt the largest budget in its history for 2025, thanks to its increased oil revenues. 

The country also aims to increase its exports to over 25 billion euros, seeking to strengthen its economy by diversifying its industrial sectors.

With such means, Libya, Sudan and Palestine are also on the list of Algiers' privileged diplomatic partners, countries that are not close to Paris or Rabat.

However, experts of the region estimate that Paris has no interest in neglecting Algeria, as it remains an essential partner in terms of human resources, migration, and in France's position in the Sahel.

The French daily newspaper Le Monde even dedicated an opinion piece about the President's errors.

The Algerians also form the largest diaspora living in France, with over 1,600,000 people, ahead of Moroccans (1,060,000) and Portuguese (640,000).