The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the French Republic, Jean-Yves Le Drian, visited Algiers this Wednesday, April 13, 2022. The latter, received by the Presidency of the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Ramtane Lamamra . The visit basically addressed two issues, namely bilateral relations between the two countries, as well as those related to the current international and regional crisis.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said his visit to Algeria was aimed at melting the ice, building a relationship of trust and clearing misunderstandings between the two countries in order to normalize bilateral relations at the beginning of new year.
Le Drian’s statements came after being received by the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
Algeria – France, a new page written?
Jean-Yves Le Drian indicated that his visit to Algeria was aimed at establishing a “relationship of trust” characterized by respect and sovereignty of each party, expressing his “hope” to work on “removing barriers and misunderstandings that may arise between the two countries.
Le Drian specified that he aimed to achieve two objectives, which was to establish “a relationship of trust between our two countries, characterized by respect for the sovereignty of each of the parties. , as well as looking to the future to work again and deepen the partnership we need. »
He added that “Algeria and France have a deep relationship distinguished by the intensity of human relations between Algerians and French”, and these relations, says Le Drian, “are rooted in a complex history.»
The head of French diplomacy also expressed his “hope of working to remove barriers and misunderstandings that may arise between the two countries”, as both parties agreed during talks to continue some areas of bilateral cooperation. He said: “This will happen by maintaining concrete dialogue between human partners and migration issues, as well as by maintaining concrete dialogue in the fight against terrorism and in our joint efforts to ensure security of our two countries. the dialogue we have launched today will lead to the resumption of political exchanges between our two governments by 2022. “
Le Drian expressed his hope that the two countries will work together on the path to a peaceful relationship and look to the future, “despite the wounds of the past that we have to deal with and the misunderstandings that we have to deal with. we will win “.
“I would like to emphasize once again that Algeria is an important partner of France bilaterally and regionally,” he said.
About the conflicts in the Maghreb region
“We seek to continue the coordination of our diplomatic initiatives to support the path of political transition in Libya after the Paris conference, where the Minister of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad, Ramtane Lamamra, represented President Tebboune,” he said.
The French Minister lined up by saying: “We are also examining the situation in Mali, in which Algeria has an important role”, emphasizing the importance of “Algeria’s commitment to implementing the peace and reconciliation agreement in Mali” . Before adding: “I accept this commitment and I hope our dialogue on this issue will continue”.
In the same vein, he stressed that France and Algeria together face “significant challenges in a regional and international context of uncertainty”, as the two countries have to present. of concrete proposals “for the challenges posed by terrorism in the Sahel region, as well as immigration, in addition to issues of economic development.»
Le Drian continued: “Given all these challenges and our common interests, our consultations are very important, this is the reason for my current presence in Algiers”, expressing his “pleasure to come to Algeria”, where “I have the honor of speaking with President Tebboune and my counterpart, Ramtane Lamamra.»
The head of French diplomacy ended his statement by saying: “I would like to thank them for the warm welcome”, adding that “it is important for me to go to Algeria for a working visit and to check this relationship is bilateral ”.