On the day of the visit by French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin to Algeria, the political debate in Paris is intensifying over how to deal with the North African neighbor. While President Emmanuel Macron’s government is betting on a cautious rapprochement, the Rassemblement National (RN) is demanding a radical change of course: abandoning diplomatic containment and opting for a hardline policy with clear demands.
The trigger for the new controversy was the statements of RN spokesman Laurent Jacobelli, who harshly attacked France’s policy toward Algeria. France has practiced for years a “diplomatie de l’inclinaison,” he said on public radio. Macron’s strategy would not have produced tangible results. Each phase of rapprochement would ultimately have been followed by new diplomatic tensions.
A relationship burdened by historical events
Relations between France and Algeria have for decades been among the most complex in the context of French foreign policy. the Algerian War from 1954 to 1962 still shapes the political and social relationship between the two countries today. Issues of memory, migration, security policy and economic cooperation overlap continuously.
Under the presidency of Emmanuel Macron there were several attempts at historical reconciliation. Macron had already early on declared that colonialism was a “crime against humanity” —a statement that was well received in Algeria, but that in parts of France provoked harsh criticism. Even so, his presidency did not manage to establish a stable basis for bilateral relations.
Tensions frequently erupt over visa issues, expulsions, security cooperation or historical statements by French politicians. Added to this is the domestic dimension: several million people with Algerian roots live in France, so every crisis between Paris and Algiers immediately reverberates in society.
The RN demands a break with Macron’s line
Laurent Jacobelli used Darmanin’s trip to lash out directly at the government. The RN accuses Macron of being excessively conciliatory toward President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. According to the right-wing party, France should defend its interests in a clearly more assertive manner.
At the center of the demands are especially two points: first, the RN demands a more decisive withdrawal of Algerian nationality from those who have been convicted in France or are to be expelled. Second, the party asks to press Algiers more forcefully in the case of the French journalist Christophe Gleizes, who is currently detained in Algeria.
The RN deliberately links these issues to the broader debate on migration. For years the party has argued that France should use its diplomatic and economic levers more firmly to secure the cooperation of countries of origin in removals. Algeria is considered a particularly difficult partner, as return procedures often stall or become politicized.
By choosing the word “Aplaventrisme” —in the sense of submissiveness— the RN also seeks to portray Macron as a weak head of state who does not vigorously defend France’s interests. This strategy fits with the party’s broader foreign-policy stance, which favors national sovereignty and a show of toughness.
Darmanin’s delicate mission in Algiers
Officially, Gérald Darmanin’s trip aims to restore judicial cooperation between the two states. In recent months diplomatic relations had deteriorated considerably. Several political controversies and mutual accusations weighed heavily on cooperation.
Darmanin is now attempting, at least on a technical level, to reopen channels of dialogue. In criminal prosecution and legal cooperation the two countries need each other. France requires Algeria’s cooperation, for example, in extraditions and repatriations; Algeria, in turn, is interested in economic stability and security-related exchanges.
Nevertheless, the minister’s mission is politically very sensitive. On the one hand, Paris cannot give the domestic impression of giving in to Algiers. On the other hand, a lasting deterioration of relations would be problematic for both states.
Because Algeria plays an important strategic role for France: in energy, migration and security terms. Since Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, Algeria has also gained geopolitical weight as a gas supplier. Europe is more intensively seeking alternative energy partners in the Mediterranean basin.
French domestic politics harden the tone
The debate about Algeria is already part of the struggle for internal political power in France. The RN uses the issue to pressure the government on both security policy and migration. It meets a social climate in which questions of national identity and state authority are discussed with increasing emotional charge.
The government, for its part, is trying to strike a balance. Voices from the presidential circle warn against defining relations with Algeria solely through symbolic domestic politics. a permanent diplomatic rupture would not only jeopardize economic interests, but could also massively hinder cooperation on migration and the fight against terrorism.
Left-wing parties also largely reject the RN’s demands for a confrontational course. They argue that historical sensitivity and pragmatic diplomacy are necessary to build stable long-term relations.
At the same time, even within the political center impatience with cooperation is growing, which from the French perspective is often difficult with Algeria. Especially regarding repatriations of people required to leave the country, French authorities have complained for years about a lack of cooperation.
Between pragmatism and power politics
Gérald Darmanin’s trip exemplifies how complex Franco-Algerian relations have become. Paris faces a strategic dilemma: a tougher line could be popular in domestic politics but carries significant diplomatic risks. A policy of dialogue, on the other hand, is increasingly interpreted by the opposition as a sign of weakness.
Moreover, Algeria also uses the tensions for domestic political purposes. President Tebboune is happy to present himself to his public as a defender of national sovereignty against the former colonial power. Therefore, every confrontation with France also carries symbolic value for Algerian politics.
Whether Darmanin’s visit will actually lead to a relaxation remains uncertain. Most likely, a cautious stabilisation of concrete areas of cooperation will be achieved in the first instance. However, fundamental conflicts —migration, historical memory and questions of political influence— will probably persist.
Thus, policy towards Algeria remains for France a sensitive terrain in which foreign policy, history and internal power struggles are inseparably intertwined.
P.T.