Algeria Cuts Diplomatic Ties With UAE Amid Escalating Tensions

Algeria has officially severed diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates, citing a pattern of "provocative and hostile actions" by Abu Dhabi. The Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the decision, stating that all efforts to maintain bilateral ties had been exhausted. The UAE ambassador was summoned on Thursday and informed of the decision, being given 48 hours to leave the country.

This move follows months of increasingly harsh rhetoric from Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who had previously alluded to severing ties and referred to the UAE as a "mini-state." Tebboune had publicly stated in July that the UAE's influence was "very negative" and that Algeria possessed evidence of this, urging Abu Dhabi to distance itself from Algerian affairs. Algerian media, aligned with the government, accused the UAE of interfering in Algeria's internal affairs and those of neighboring countries, including Libya and Sahel nations.

The dispute intensified in February when Tebboune spoke of a conflict with a "state or mini-state," widely understood to be a reference to the UAE, accusing it of attempting to undermine Algeria's stability. On the same day, Algeria initiated procedures to cancel an air transport services agreement signed with the UAE in 2013.

Long-standing tensions between the two nations stem from divergent stances on regional issues such as Libya, the Western Sahara, Mali, and Sudan, as well as Abu Dhabi's position on Israel. Algeria has also accused the UAE of supporting the Movement for the Emancipation of the Kabyle (MAK) separatist movement, which Algeria designates as a terrorist organization, though no public evidence has been presented.

President Tebboune further accused Abu Dhabi of attempting to influence Algeria's presidential elections in 2019 and 2024. Recent months have seen a review and cancellation of several economic agreements and partnerships between the two countries. The severance of relations marks a new phase of tension, with potential repercussions for economic and political cooperation and their respective positions on critical issues in North Africa and the Sahel region.