Algeria cuts diplomatic ties with UAE amid escalating tensions

Algeria has decided to sever diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), saying it had exhausted all efforts to preserve ties amid months of escalating tensions between the two countries.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Algeria’s Foreign Ministry said it had repeatedly raised concerns with Abu Dhabi over UAE’s “hostile actions” and had made extensive efforts to prevent the disputes from causing irreparable damage to bilateral relations.

“Despite these numerous warnings, the United Arab Emirates has persisted in these actions, which have reached a point where they can no longer be considered acceptable or tolerable within the framework of relations between two sovereign states, or remain unanswered,” the ministry said.

Algeria informed the UAE ambassador of the decision and gave him 48 hours to comply, formally ending diplomatic ties after months of mounting tensions.

The rift has deepened over Algeria’s concerns about what it regards as an increasingly interventionist UAE policy across North Africa, the Sahel and West Asia, including countries close to Algeria’s borders.

Among the sources of tension is Libya, where the UAE has provided extensive political and military support to Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, commander of the self-styled Libyan National Army, including drones and other military equipment.

UAE president’s tip-off to Netanyahu puts Israel ties under new scrutiny

The UAE president directly warned Netanyahu that Hamas was planning a major offensive days before the group launched the al-Aqsa Flood operation, according to a report.

Algiers has also accused the UAE of backing the civil war in Sudan, where Abu Dhabi has been providing support to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

In April 2024, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, in remarks widely understood to be directed at Abu Dhabi, said, “Wherever there is conflict, the money of this state [the Emirates] is there, in Mali, Libya, and Sudan.”

A UN fact-finding mission has documented mass killings, sexual violence and other atrocities committed by the RSF in and around El-Fasher, a city in western Sudan, saying in February that the group’s actions pointed to a “genocidal path” targeting the Zaghawa and Fur communities.

The Algerian president has also referred to an unnamed Gulf state as a “midget state,” maintaining that it sought to interfere in matters where Algeria had prevented major powers from intervening.

On February 7, Algeria began withdrawing from its bilateral air-services agreement with the UAE, signalling deteriorating relationship between the two countries.

The rift has also been fueled by the UAE’s close ties with Morocco, Algeria’s regional rival. Abu Dhabi has backed Rabat’s position on the disputed Western Sahara and opened a consulate in Laayoune, the largest city in the disputed territory, in 2020.

The UAE’s normalization of relations with Israel has further widened the divide with Algiers, which has firmly rejected the so-called Abraham Accords.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk