فاس نيوز ميديا جريدة الكترونية جهوية تعنى بشؤون و أخبار جهة فاس مكناس – متجددة على مدار الساعة
Paris, France – The French newspaper Le Figaro has revealed a letter sent by President Emmanuel Macron to his Prime Minister, François Bayrou, in which he calls for a “firmer approach” towards Algeria. According to the letter, which the newspaper was able to review, the French president believes that France has “no other choice” but to take “additional decisions” against the Algerian regime after months of escalating tensions between the two countries.
In his letter, Macron cited several reasons to justify this shift in French policy. Among the most prominent points he raised was the fate of both the French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, who was sentenced to five years in prison on charges of “undermining national unity,” and the French journalist Christophe Gleizes, who received a seven-year prison sentence in Algeria for “apologizing for terrorism.”
The letter also touched upon other issues, including Algeria’s “failure to respect its obligations” regarding immigration, as well as the “cessation of cooperation from the 18 Algerian consulates present on our soil with state services.”
The letter did not stop at outlining the reasons but also presented clear proposals for the measures to be taken. Macron called for the “formal suspension” of the 2013 agreement with Algeria, which had granted visa exemptions for holders of official and diplomatic passports. He also called for the immediate use of the “visa-readmission lever (LVR),” which allows for the refusal of short and long-stay visas to holders of diplomatic and service passports, as well as to all types of applicants.
In another context, the French president asked the prime minister to instruct the Minister of Interior to find ways for “useful” cooperation with his Algerian counterpart, while stressing the need to “work relentlessly” to address the delinquency of undocumented Algerian individuals. Macron explained that the “resumption of cooperation in migration and consular matters” would determine the future steps in the bilateral relationship.
The French president concluded his letter by asserting that a return to dialogue would allow for the addressing of “other sensitive bilateral issues” that are pending, such as hospital debt, the activities of certain Algerian state services on French territory, and unresolved memory issues.
