After a five-day visit to Algeria, where she was warmly received, the return of former French minister Ségolène Royal was keenly anticipated. She was particularly expected to be put to the test by the hard right and the far right, which set radio and television studios ablaze following Ms Royal’s unequivocal stance in Algiers.
The former minister, who took the helm of the France–Algeria Association (AFA) last December, was subjected to a barrage of insults for speaking frankly about France’s colonial past, its responsibility in the renewed tensions with Algeria, and what Paris must urgently do to mend relations. These remarks angered anti-Algerian voices, but they did not cause the AFA president to waver.
Speaking on TF1 on Monday, 2 February, Royal reiterated that “the dramatic consequences of colonisation (from 1830 to 1962, editor’s note) have never been acknowledged” by France. She called on the French executive to make “a gesture of reconciliation and recognition,” stressing that “Algerians are not demanding financial compensation, as other formerly colonised countries have done.”
She recalled that Emmanuel Macron, when he was a candidate, had used “very strong words” during a visit to Algiers in February 2017, when he described colonisation as a “crime against humanity.” “But afterwards, he completely changed course, and that was painful for Algerians; it was perceived as a form of betrayal,” Royal added.
In March 2022, the French head of state called for “the easing of memories” after a serious misstep in which he spoke of a “memory rent” allegedly exploited by Algiers. In August 2022, he travelled to Algeria with a delegation of 90 figures. Many economic issues were explored, but the most sensitive disputes were barely addressed, likely to avoid undermining Macron’s historic visit.
The machinery began to seize up in February 2023, following France’s extraction of Algerian activist Amira Bouraoui, who was being pursued by her country’s judiciary on charges of blasphemy. Despite difficulties, the two countries managed to maintain relations, underpinned by strong historical and economic ties. There was even talk of President Abdelmadjid Tebboune visiting Paris after Ramadan 2024 (in March and April).
Then came the shock: in July 2024, Paris recognised Morocco’s full sovereignty over Western Sahara. Algiers, the leading supporter of Sahrawi independence movements, viewed the decision as an affront and immediately recalled its ambassador from France. He has never returned. Since that rupture, diplomatic—and economic—relations have failed to regain their former vitality.
It was this fraught context that Ms Royal encountered firsthand upon arriving in Algeria on 30 January 2026. The former minister offered her good offices to help thaw political and diplomatic relations, an idea previously floated by President Tebboune in February 2025. On the ground, the French politician found attentive listeners and was even authorised to visit French journalist Christophe Gleizes, who has been sentenced to seven years in prison for “apology of terrorism.”
Aside from his parents and the Franco-Algerian cardinal of Algiers, Gleizes had received “no other visits,” the former minister noted. She said she had “secured” the journalist’s transfer to a facility near Algiers and had “supported” his family’s request for a presidential pardon. The Algerian head of state, she added, is open to dialogue “provided that respect and consideration are present,” according to the AFA president.
“Respect” and “consideration,” Royal says. But are Paris and Algiers speaking the same language in this matter? Nothing could be less certain. When writer Boualem Sansal was granted a pardon, messages from the French executive were very positive. Yet no sooner had the essayist returned to France than, spurred on by media outlets eager for incendiary statements, he resumed his provocations directed at Algeria.
To cap it all, Sansal was elected in the first round to the prestigious Académie française. Algiers made no comment on the event, but it is clear that, after everything the writer has said and done, his appointment to such a high-profile institution is unlikely to delight the other side of the Mediterranean.
Another cloud looms on the horizon: the stance of French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez, after what initially appeared to be a very positive start. Following Sansal’s release, Nuñez indicated that his Algerian counterpart had invited him and that he intended to travel there. The successor to the hawkish Bruno Retailleau has since called that trip into question. Speaking last Friday on France Inter, he said he was awaiting “very strong moves from Algiers on two issues”: “the resumption of deportations of Algerians in an irregular situation,” and “the situation of Christophe Gleizes.”
Nuñez is following in Retailleau’s footsteps: diktats, conditions, demands, red lines. Everyone knows how that ended for the former French minister. So caution is advised. Commenting on what appears to be the start of a reversal, Ségolène Royal said: “The interior minister must go there. He is expected (…) When you set conditions, it means you do not want to go.”
It is easy to imagine what will happen if Nuñez continues to conspicuously snub the invitation from his Algerian counterpart…
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