Algeria Responds to Macron, Announces Withdrawal from Diplomatic Visa Agreement with France
Algeria announced on Thursday its intention to formally withdraw from a longstanding bilateral agreement with France that exempts holders of diplomatic and service passports from visa requirements, a sharp escalation in the latest episode of mounting tensions between the two countries.
The Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a strongly worded statement in response to French President Emmanuel Macron's decision earlier this week to suspend the 2013 visa exemption accord, accusing Paris of 'reneging on its responsibilities' and distorting the nature of the bilateral dispute.
'The message of the French President completely exonerates France of all responsibility and places the entire blame on Algeria. Nothing could be further from the truth,' the Algerian Foreign Ministry said.
The Algerian government also sought to clarify the origins of the agreement, emphasizing that the 2013 visa deal had been initiated by France alone. 'At no point did Algeria request such an agreement. The proposal came solely and repeatedly from the French side,' the statement added.
The Ministry further declared that France's unilateral suspension of the agreement provides Algeria with 'the appropriate opportunity' to formally annul the deal, suggesting a clean and decisive break from a framework it now views as both obsolete and politically charged.
President Macron's move came amid growing criticism in France of Algeria's human rights record, particularly following the arrests of Algerian-French author Boualem Sansal and journalist Christophe Glez, both of whom remain imprisoned in Algeria under charges viewed by French officials as politically motivated.
In a letter addressed to French High Commissioner François Bayrou, and obtained by Le Figaro, Macron instructed the government to 'formally suspend' the visa agreement, saying it was no longer 'tenable' under current diplomatic conditions.
Macron also vowed to take 'additional measures' in response to what he called Algeria's 'increasingly hostile posture,' pointing to 'systematic repression' and a lack of judicial transparency in high-profile cases involving dual nationals.
Algeria has sharply escalated its diplomatic standoff with France, announcing on Thursday not only the annulment of a long-standing visa exemption agreement, but also the immediate termination of France's decades-long free use of Algerian state-owned properties.
In a statement carried by the Algerian Press Service (APS), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that the French chargé d'affaires was formally summoned and informed of the Algerian government's decision to end the French Embassy's access to multiple government-owned properties that had been provided free of charge.
'The Algerian authorities have decided to terminate the arrangement under which the French Embassy in Algiers has, for decades, benefited from the gratuitous use of several real estate properties belonging to the Algerian state,' the statement read.
The move adds significant weight to what is quickly becoming a full-blown diplomatic rupture between Algiers and Paris, with bilateral agreements unraveling on multiple fronts in a matter of days.
According to a previous APS report published in March, France currently holds 61 state-owned properties across Algeria, including 18 hectares used by the French Embassy and four hectares for the Ambassador's residence in Algiers, often rented at nominal or symbolic prices.
Algerian officials now say those arrangements are being reviewed and will be subject to renegotiation under fair market terms, citing France's 'non-reciprocal approach and recent provocations.'
This announcement comes just 24 hours after Algeria declared its intention to withdraw from a 2013 agreement with France that allowed holders of diplomatic and service passports to enter both countries without visas.
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