Algerian president rebukes France's aid allegations, calls them "ignorance”

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has strongly rejected claims circulating in French political and media circles suggesting that Algeria receives financial aid and assistance from France, with some reports even threatening to suspend such aid.

Tebboune dismissed these allegations, describing them as "ignorance about Algeria," Caliber.Az reports citing British media.

Speaking during the opening of the National Cinema Sessions, President Tebboune asserted, “Algeria needs no one but God Almighty and its people.” He further emphasized, “We embrace and cherish our friends, but those who choose hostility, that is their concern.”

The president’s remarks came in response to statements from French officials who had suggested they might cut what they claimed to be development aid to Algeria, which some in France’s far-right had alleged amounted to €800 million ($830 million). However, these claims were debunked by multiple French media outlets that investigated the matter.

The Algerian Press Service also rejected the existence of any such French aid, calling the allegations an attempt to exert pressure on Algeria, particularly by the French far-right. The agency clarified that the economic relationship between the two countries is primarily characterized by French exports to Algeria, which amounted to $3.2 billion in 2023, as well as French investments in Algeria, totaling $2.5 billion. This figure, it noted, is relatively modest compared to the investments of countries such as Turkey, the United States, and Qatar.

By Vafa Guliyeva