Algeria–Spain relations

Algeria and Spain are full members of the Union for the Mediterranean.

Algeria–Spain relations

Spain

Algeria

Unlike those of Spain with Morocco, Algerian-Spanish relations are not strained by a direct territorial dispute; there have been however discrepancies over the approach to the Western Sahara conflict.[1]

History

Precedents

Much of the territories of current-day Spain and Algeria were part of polities such as the Roman Empire or the Arab Caliphates.

In the 16th century, the Hispanic Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire vied for hegemony in North Africa, including current-day Algeria. The former captured in 1510 the rock of Algiers and held it for brief spell before being expelled by Hayreddin Barbarossa in 1529. The Zayyanid Kingdom of Tlemcen received protection from Charles V in exchange for parias, allowing the local ruler to remain in power until the 1555 Ottoman conquest.[2]

The Spanish Monarchy exerted control of Oran (1509–1708; 1732–1792) and the neighbouring port of Mers El Kébir for much of the early modern period.

History of modern relations

The Francoist dictatorship officially recognized Algeria as a sovereign state in 1962 and proceeded to appoint an ambassador.[3] Spain's bilateral relations with the Algerian republic, which were not good during Francoism,[4] would later experience a crisis in 1977–1978, when Algeria—cut off from the 1975 Tripartite Madrid Accords on the transfer of the administration of Western Sahara—came to provide instrumental support to the Canary Islands Independence Movement,[5] as well as to Sahrawi nationalism.[6]

The two countries signed a treaty of friendship, good neighbourliness and cooperation on 8 October 2002 in Madrid.[7][8] The two states cooperate on anti-terrorism issues.[7] The triangular balance between Algeria, Morocco and Spain influences the Spanish position on the conflict of Western Sahara; Algeria is committed to the referendum on self-determination, while calling for a stronger commitment from Spain on this on the basis of the latter's "historical responsibility".[9]

Both countries reinforced ties in 2013.[10] Algeria and Spain positioned themselves as important partners in 2015,[11] remaining linked "with strong relations" as of 2017.[12]

In March 2022, following a letter made public sent by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to King Mohamed VI of Morocco in which he assured that the proposal for an autonomy regime for Western Sahara that Morocco made in 2007 is the "most serious, realistic and credible" proposal for the resolution of the conflict, and the confirmation by the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares that showed his confidence that there would be no retaliation for this turn by Algeria, the Algerian government called its ambassador in Spain to consultations.[13][14][15] The content of the letter and the change in the position of the Spanish government in the conflict of the Western Sahara was rejected by the rest of Spanish political parties, including Unidas Podemos, the minor member of the government coalition.[16]

Consulate-General of Algeria in Barcelona

Resident diplomatic missions

See also

References

Citations
  1. Gillespie 2000, p. 78.
  2. Oliván Santaliestra, Laura (2018). "Introducción diplomacia y embajadas en la edad moderna: De lo global a lo cotidiano". Chronica Nova. Granada: Universidad de Granada (44): 12. doi:10.30827/cn.v0i44.8351. ISSN 0210-9611.
  3. Thieux 2007, p. 244.
  4. Thieux 2007, p. 243-244; Bustos 2006, p. 500.
  5. Bustos 2006, pp. 500–501.
  6. Casals 2020, p. 224.
  7. Dris-Aït-Hamadouche & Dris 2006, p. 489.
  8. España: "Tratado de amistad, buena vecindad y cooperación entre el Reino de España y la República Argelina Democrática y Popular, hecho en Madrid el 8 de octubre de 2002" (PDF). Boletín Oficial del Estado (270): 39752–39755. 11 November 2003. ISSN 0212-033X.
  9. Dris-Aït-Hamadouche & Dris 2006, pp. 492–493.
  10. "Algeria reinforces ties with Spain". 16 April 2013.
  11. "Algeria, Spain Positioned As 'Important' Economic Partners - Sellal". All Africa. 21 May 2015.
  12. "Algeria, Spain linked with strong relations". Algeria Press Service. 17 May 2017. Archived from the original on 17 January 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  13. Castro, Irene (2022-03-18). "Sánchez apoya la propuesta de Marruecos para la autonomía del Sáhara". ElDiario.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-03-20.
  14. elDiario.es, Agencias / (2022-03-20). "La embajadora de Marruecos regresa a Madrid después del cambio de posición de España sobre el Sáhara". ElDiario.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-03-20.
  15. "Algeria recalls Spain envoy over Western Sahara policy change". Al Jazeera. 19 March 2022. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  16. Castro, Irene (2022-03-18). "Sánchez apoya la propuesta de Marruecos para la autonomía del Sáhara". ElDiario.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-03-20.
Bibliography
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