French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday said he is hopeful that the diplomatic tension with Algeria would ease soon, reported The BBC.
“My wish is that we can calm things down because I think it is better to talk to one another and to make progress,” Macron told France Inter radio in an interview.
President Macron added that he had very cordial relations with Algerian President Abdelmajid Tebboune.
The statement comes after Algeria recalled its ambassador to Paris for consultations on Saturday and closed its airspace to French military planes on Sunday after the French president made comments about the northern Africa country.
The LeMonde newspaper quoted President Macron as saying Algeria was ruled by a “political-military system” and that the country’s rulers had rewritten the history of its colonization not based on truth, but based on hatred of France. He said the Hirak movement, which ousted President Abdelaziz Bouteflika from power, has weakened the Algerian system.
The French president also spoke about the current politics of Algeria. He said Algerian President Abdelmajid Tebboune was trapped in a tough political system.
The Algerian presidency was quick enough to react to Macron’s unacceptable remarks.
“Macron’s remarks are an unacceptable insult to the memory of over 5.63 million martyrs who sacrificed themselves with a valiant resistance against French colonialism,” said a statement from the country’s presidency on Saturday.
A French foreign ministry spokesperson regretted the Algerian government’s decision to recall its ambassador. The spokesperson emphasized France’s commitment to sustaining the two countries’ long-standing ties.
The two countries’ relationship deteriorated after the French government announced its decision to sharply reduce the number of visas it grants to citizens of Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia as governments there are refusing to take back migrants expelled from France. It was announced that Algerian and Moroccan visas would be slashed in half and Tunisian visas will be reduced by 30%.
