Observers in Algeria are attentively anticipating the outcome of the early legislative elections expected to be held in France in two rounds on 30 June and 7 July, fearing it could leave negative effects on relations between the two countries if a far-right government gets formed.
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is set to visit Paris in September or October, according to a previous arrangement between both capitals.
Meanwhile, legislative elections in France could produce a far-right government for the first time since World War II and therefore, significantly affect Paris’ relationship with Algiers.
After winning the 2024 European elections last Sunday, the far-right National Rally could also win the upcoming French legislative race, with the potential for decisions and actions that will further complicate relations with Algeria.
Last Thursday, Tebboune and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron renewed their resolve to overcome differences during their meeting in Bari, Italy, on the sidelines of the G7 meeting, sources close to the Algerian government said.
But amid the recent developments in France, many Algerians fear that a government headed by the far right would affect the granting of visas to Algerians and the 1968 Franco-Algerian agreement, which frames the humanitarian aspect of bilateral relations of both countries.
Algerian authorities are also paying particular attention to the thousands of irregular Algerian migrants in France, and the management of a complex file of memory between the two sides.
If the National Rally is to form the next French government, it will ally with two other parties that have strong positions on Algeria: The Republicans or LR, led by Eric Ciotti, and the Reconquête party of French far-right leader Eric Zemmour, whose parents lived in Algeria before independence.
All three parties agree on the Algerian file. Last year, deputies from the Republicans had launched a parliamentary campaign seeking to annul the 1968 agreement, which confers a special status on Algerians in terms of movement, residence and employment in France. But their plans were obstructed by leftist and presidential majority in Parliament.
In case of a shift in forces following the upcoming legislative elections in France, observers in Algeria expect that some far-right parliamentarians would exert new and stronger pressure on Macron to cancel the agreement.
Also, Marine Le Pen, the former leader of the National Rally, had earlier promised a policy towards Algeria “completely opposite” to what has been followed in recent decades.
“We are not economically dependent on Algerians or otherwise on Algerian gas. It is primarily in Algeria’s interests that its relations with France are healthy and peaceful,” she said.
Le Pen added, “Algerians who already live in France and behave in accordance with French rights, respect its customs and love its tradition, its history, its culture... have no reason not to stay there. But the other certain minorities will have to leave.”
Also, the three far-right parties agree on the need to reduce the number of visas granted for Algerians.
In early 2023, Jordan Bardella, the far-right party leader, had accused Macron of “breaking all records” by issuing more than 275,000 visas to Algerians in 2019.
Concerning the file of irregular Algerians living in France, far-right politician Marion Maréchal-Le Pen and the Republicans had proposed, ahead of the recent European legislative elections, returning those classified as security risks, criminals and the long-term unemployed back to Algeria.
Algerian authorities met their speech with great sensitivity. They believe Macron's good towards their country may not be sufficient to improve relations in the face of pressure exerted by the far right, which longs for the colonial past.”
