At a time when the debate on immigration in France is reaching new heights of polarization and amid repeated attacks from the far right against Algeria, former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin stands tall to defend Algeria, this “friendly country.” While advocating “dialogue” and “mutual respect,” instead of the sterile logic of confrontation.
While the Old Continent has been experiencing a wave of populist and nationalist movements for several years, and France, since the failed referendum, is now negotiating a shift to the right, all based on anti-immigration positions – which were until now the preserve of the extreme right and which are in the process of contaminating the center-right parties – a free and courageous voice, that of the former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, stands out, in a European context of toughening migration policies, by calling for reason and cooperation rather than confrontation.
A Righteous Man Among the Righteous
And for good reason. Dominique de Villepin, then Minister of Foreign Affairs, delivered a historic speech on February 14, 2003, to the United Nations Security Council in more than one way. And this, to affirm his country’s opposition to military intervention in Iraq? Did he not warn in a recent speech that “there will be no peace in the Middle East without the creation of a Palestinian state”? Recalling on the occasion that “in 1948, there was a people who were deprived of their land. 700 thousand Palestinians had to leave. And this injustice is still at work.”
And it is in a tense climate between Algeria and the former colonial power – exacerbated by the repeated attacks against Algeria in France, coming from the extreme right and marked on one side by accusations of genocide during the colonization launched by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune; and on the other hand by the spectacular turnaround of France which now supports the Moroccan autonomy plan concerning Western Sahara – which the former boss of French diplomacy under Chirac observes with concern the progressive deterioration of bilateral ties between Algiers and Paris.
“Unfortunately, for several months, even years, we have seen the relationship with this big brother, this friendly country that is Algeria, deteriorate day by day […] going from bad to worse, to the point of accusations that go far beyond any reality,” he lamented.
Dialogue and mutual respect”
On the other hand, and to thaw the situation, De Villepin insists on the need for “dialogue” and “mutual respect” to address these sensitive issues. He calls for “the ability to assume this history that is shared and that is so important on both sides of the Mediterranean.” However, he notes, “this vision contrasts with the increasingly harsh rhetoric adopted by certain French politicians.”
Thus, in response to the presenter who challenged him on Monday, October 7, on the set of the France Info channel on the current crisis between Algeria and France, triggered last July after the French president decided to support Moroccan theses on the question of Western Sahara; as well as the refusal of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to visit France “under the current conditions”, Dominique de Villepin stressed that “France cannot ignore Algeria in its search for solutions to all the problems posed”. He warns against the “temptation” in France “to make Algeria the scapegoat for a certain number of our problems, particularly in terms of immigration”.
Returning to the thorny issue of Western Sahara, the French statesman, a member of the Gaullist right, argued that “Emmanuel Macron should not ignore Algeria on this subject”. Explaining that the President wanted to re-establish dialogue with Morocco by accepting Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara; but that he should have “done all this within the framework of the United Nations and in coordination with Algeria”.
Wounds still gaping
Concerning the question of memory, the wounds having remained raw on both sides of the Mediterranean, the speaker finds it absurd “to open a war with Algeria” or “a war of memories”; and by calling into question the 1968 agreements, which granted a special status to Algerians in France.
“If we look back – and this work has been done by many historians – there are war crimes, even crimes against humanity.” However, “a clear recognition of a past is necessary; except that some politicians in France seek to circumvent, distort, or minimize with inadequate terms.” An eloquent nod to the recent statements of Ms. Le Pen’s friends.
Finally, let us recall that the recent declarations of the former Prime Minister, known for his support for just causes, come in a context of virulent attacks from the far right which increasingly exercises a growing influence on the internal and foreign policy of France and which exploits the questions of immigration and the question of memory to poison the relations, already execrable, between Algiers and Paris.
