Algeria halts irregular migrants repatriation from Spain, limits flights between both countries, as diplomatic tensions rise

Algeria halts irregular migrants repatriation from Spain, limits flights between both countries, as diplomatic tensions rise
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Wednesday 30 March 2022 - 15:20

The Algerian regime has “indefinitely” suspended the repatriation of its irregular migrants from Spain, and drastically reduced flights of the Spanish airline company Iberia to one rotation per week.

According to official Algerian sources cited by the local Echorouk newspaper, “this decision is a consequence of what they consider in Algiers as the alignment of Pedro Sanchez with the Moroccan theses in the Western Sahara conflict.”

The news was confirmed by Spanish news outlet El Confidentiel, which stated that Algerian authorities describe this cancellation of repatriations as “global” and “multi-faceted at several levels.”

The repatriations with Algeria were exclusively done by sea, twice a week from Alicante to Oran and from Almeria to Ghazaouet in high season.

However, this frequency agreed between the Ministries of Interior of both countries, has not always been respected.

In addition, and despite Spanish authorities requesting increased flights between Algeria and Spain, the north African country responded to the request with a “categorical denial” yesterday. Air Algerie will now not fly to Madrid, while Iberia will only fly once a week to Algiers.

The Algerian regime’s successive “counter actions” against its Spanish neighbor are multiplying by the day. The Secretary-General of the Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Chakib Kaid, went to Rome on Monday and announced that “Algeria will review all its agreements with Spain, in all areas, to see how the relationship develops in the future.”

The official said that “halting gas exports to the Iberian country is not currently possible,” due to the binding nature of the agreement, set to expire by 2030, but added that a possible refusal to renew the deal is possible, as Algiers explores a possible shift of the exports of its natural resources to Italy.

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