Paris’s plan to increase the number of visas issued to Algerians to 250,000 a year has sparked criticism in France, with critics pointing to a perilous mismatch and arguing that the Élysée Palace is making unilateral concessions whilst completely ignoring the issues of illegal migration and security.
The main argument put forward by critics of the current French opposition, including MEP François Bellamy, is the disregard for the principle of reciprocity in international relations. Whilst France declares a large-scale opening of its borders, Algeria continues to evade its obligations to repatriate its own citizens who are in Europe illegally.
The failure to make progress on the return of irregular migrants to their home country calls into question the effectiveness of the migration dialogue.
On the other hand, similar contradictions have arisen in the sphere of legal collaboration. Experts emphasise that full-fledged judicial and police co-operation between states must be based on a well-established readmission mechanism – the automatic return of individuals who have committed offences or crimes on foreign territory. The current practice, however, whereby the burden of detaining and providing legal support for criminal offenders from other countries falls predominantly on the French law enforcement system, demonstrates a lack of constructive co-operation on the part of the Algerian authorities.
“Yet it wouldn’t have been complicated to explain that France cannot open its doors to Algerian citizens as long as their government continues to massively refuse to take back those who remain there illegally – the issue isn’t even mentioned,” Bellamy said.
Analysts have noted that French diplomacy needs to adjust its rhetoric by drawing a clear distinction between Algerian society and the ruling elites. A constructive approach requires openly acknowledging that Paris’s disagreements are not with the population of the North African state, but with the actions of its leadership.
The political elite in Algeria, in particular, often uses anti-colonial slogans to bolster its domestic legitimacy, whilst also violating bilateral agreements.
Algeria remained a key French territory for more than thirteen decades and held the status of an overseas department, being a legal part of France. The violent war of independence, which led to the exodus of over a million European settlers, has deeply scarred the national memory of both states. Therefore, in today’s world, this historical context is often used as a tool for political pressure, complicating pragmatic discussions on current issues.
A further cause for criticism is Paris’s lack of firmness in defending humanitarian principles and the rights of its own citizens abroad. A telling detail highlighted in expert analyses is the diplomatic mission’s media activity: discussion of sporting events in the press takes place against a backdrop of complete silence from officials regarding the fate of Christophe Glez – a French sports journalist who remains in custody in an Algerian prison.
The refusal to publicly defend the interests of its citizens to to keep up its diplomatic facade is seen within France as a weakness in its foreign policy.
Hence, the Élysée Palace’s current foreign policy course displays a clear bias towards one-sided compromises, with little corresponding response from its partners. The restoration of a stable, predictable and genuinely respectful dialogue between France and Algeria will only be possible once Paris abandons its strategy of apologies in favour of a pragmatic defence of its sovereign interests, thereby ensuring that matters of migration control and bilateral legal assistance become an indispensable condition for any further co-operation.
“Our diplomacy is hostage to a president who seems determined to send all the way to the end proofs of voluntary submission. France will only regain relations of mutual respect with Algeria when its own leaders have stopped humiliating it,” Bellamy concluded.
