France announced on Wednesday its intention to reassess a long-standing agreement that facilitates the movement of Algerian citizens to France, contingent upon Algeria’s willingness to accept the return of individuals deported by French authorities.
The already tense relationship between Paris and Algiers has deteriorated further following a knife attack in Mulhouse on Saturday, perpetrated by an Algerian national whom France had attempted to repatriate unsuccessfully on multiple occasions.
“The tragic incident in Mulhouse occurred because this individual was ordered to leave the country and had been presented for repatriation 14 times, yet each time he was denied,” stated Prime Minister Francois Bayrou during a press conference.
According to a 1968 agreement between France and Algeria, Algerian citizens benefit from various exemptions to French immigration regulations, which facilitate their settlement in France.
French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau has consistently urged for a reassessment of the pact following Algeria’s refusal to accept back its citizens who have been ordered to leave France under the “OQTF” (obligation to leave French territory) deportation policy.
Bayrou stated that Algeria’s unwillingness to repatriate its citizens constitutes “a direct affront to the agreements we have with the Algerian authorities, and we will not tolerate it.” He mentioned that his government would take four to six weeks to evaluate Algeria’s adherence to the 1968 agreement.
During this time, his government plans to provide Algeria with a list of individuals it believes should be returned to their homeland. While he refrained from disclosing the exact number of individuals on the list, he indicated that it is “considerable.”
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“If this situation persists, the government believes that the benefits granted under the 1968 agreement will need to be reassessed… There is a strong sentiment that the agreement has been violated,” Bayrou remarked.
In recent months, relations between Paris and Algiers have soured, particularly after France acknowledged Morocco’s claim to the contested territory of Western Sahara, which Rabat seeks to have recognized internationally as Moroccan.
This decision has provoked anger in Algiers, which supports the Polisario Front in its quest for an independent state.
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