Algeria and France Revive Security Cooperation Amidst Lingering Diplomatic Tensions
Image: TSA
Takeaway
The renewed security cooperation between Algeria and France could lead to increased opportunities for European security firms in Algeria, particularly in areas such as border security and counter-terrorism technology. Investors should monitor companies like Thales and Airbus, which have existing relationships with the Algerian government, for potential contract wins. However, lingering political tensions could still pose a risk to these ventures.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez visited Algiers on Monday, February 17, 2026, and Tuesday, February 18, 2026, meeting with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Interior Minister Said Sayoud to reactivate a high-level security cooperation mechanism. The agreement aims to restore "normal security relations" between the two countries, encompassing judicial matters, policing, and intelligence. Senior security officials from both countries, including France's domestic intelligence chief and Algeria's head of internal security, participated in the talks.
This move signals a potential thaw in relations that have been strained since France officially backed Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara region in 2024, a position Algeria opposes. The renewed cooperation addresses a backlog of issues and aims to improve collaboration on readmissions, as Algeria has previously refused to take back its nationals living irregularly in France. The visit, planned for months but repeatedly delayed, represents the first by a French official of Nunez's rank in several months.
The reactivated mechanism will cover judicial coordination, police cooperation, intelligence exchange, and migration-related matters, including repatriation. Nunez emphasized the need to improve cooperation on readmissions and expressed hope that relations at a "very high level" in security, security cooperation, and migration can continue. Prior to the trip, Nunez intended to raise security issues, including drug trafficking and counterterrorism, given Algeria's key role in the latter, sharing borders with Niger and Mali.
While the reactivation of the security mechanism is a positive step, officials have refrained from announcing a full normalization of relations. Progress in judicial cooperation and migration issues will likely determine the future trajectory of ties. The visit also comes after France expelled twelve Algerian diplomatic officials from the country in April 2025 after Algeria expelled twelve French officials the day prior over the arrest of an Algerian consular official in a kidnapping case.
Looking ahead, observers will be watching for concrete implementation of the agreed measures and any further progress on contentious issues such as migration and the Western Sahara dispute. The effectiveness of the security cooperation mechanism in addressing shared security concerns, such as counterterrorism and drug trafficking, will also be a key indicator of the relationship's future. Any movement on the case of Christophe Gleizes, the French sports journalist serving a seven-year sentence for "glorifying terrorism," could also signal a further warming of relations.