Algeria’s ambassador to France, Antar Dadoud, returned to Paris on Thursday following a bitter three-month row over French President Emmanuel Macron’s remarks about colonial abuses.
Algeria Press Service reported on Wednesday that President Abdelmadjid Tebboune received Daoud before he resumed his duties in Paris on January 6, citing a communiqué released by the President’s office. The statement provided no further detail regarding Algeria’s decision and whether the government had received an official apology from the French President.
However, the announcement was made following French efforts to restore ties. Last month, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian met with his Algerian counterpart Ramtane Lamamra in Algiers to officially launch a dialogue to normalise ties. Le Drian also stressed that Algeria is an “essential partner for France” and said that it was necessary for both sides “to work on removing the obstacles and misunderstandings that may exist between our two countries.”
In November, Macron’s office issued a statement saying that the President regrets “the controversies and misunderstandings generated” by the remarks he made about Algeria. It also noted that Macron has the “greatest respect” for Algeria and is “strongly attached to the development” of bilateral ties.
The statement was welcomed by Algiers and Lamamra called it “respectful” and reasonable.”
Macron stirred up controversy in October when he questioned the existence of an Algerian nation before French colonisation. “The building of Algeria as a nation is a phenomenon worth watching. Was there an Algerian nation before French colonisation? That is the question,” he rhetorically asked.
He had also argued that Algeria’s ruling system had “rewritten history” to portray France in a bad light and foment anti-French hatred. Macron noted that France was not the only coloniser of Algeria, adding that Turkey, too, had colonised the country, accusing Algeria of changing history to show France as the “only colonisers.”
Macron’s remarks sparked a diplomatic row between the two countries, with Algeria calling his comments “unacceptable” and an “insult to the memory” of millions of Algerians who sacrificed their lives fighting French colonialists. Algeria also recalled Daoud from France and barred French military planes from using its airspace, which is used by France to conduct operations in West Africa.
Macron has since tried to calm tensions between the two nations, especially as France sees Algeria as a gateway to its operations in West Africa and as a crucial partner in bringing stability to war-torn Libya. The French President has already pushed for greater transparency regarding France’s past with Algeria and in this respect has called for a “truth commission” to report on the Algerian war of independence against France.