Algeria has pushed back against President Emmanuel Macron's call for Paris to get tougher with the African nation, saying France was seeking to "exonerate" itself from any blame as their standoff drags on.
Tensions between Paris and Algiers have reached new levels in recent months, with Macron's hopes of the historic post-colonial reconciliation that he espoused at the start of his presidency now appearing a distant dream.
"France must be strong and command respect," Macron said in a letter to his Prime Minister Francois Bayrou published by the daily newspaper Le Figaro online late on Wednesday.
"It can only obtain this from its partners if it itself shows them the respect it demands. This basic rule also applies to Algeria," the letter said.
Visas for diplomatic passports
The Algerian foreign ministry said Macron's remarks sought to "exonerate France from all its responsibilities" as relations between the two countries continue to fray, accusing Paris of putting "all the blame on the Algerian side."
Among the measures Macron requested from his government in his letter was the "formal" suspension of a 2013 agreement with Algiers "concerning visa exemptions for official and diplomatic passports."
Algiers said that "France, and France alone" had pushed for that agreement.
Macron also asked his government to "immediately" use a provision in a 2024 immigration law, which allows the refusal of short-stay visas to holders of service and diplomatic passports, as well as long-stay visas to all applicants.
Imprisonments
To prevent Algerian diplomats from being able to travel to France via a third country, France will ask its EU partners in the Schengen free travel space to cooperate.
A major bone of contention has been Algeria's imprisonment of French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal and prominent French football journalist Christophe Gleizes.
Macron pointed in the letter to the cases of Sansal, sentenced to five years in prison for "undermining national unity", and Gleizes, sentenced to seven years for "apology for terrorism."
