France mulls ending visa-free entry for Algerian diplomats, officials

France is considering imposing visa requirements on holders of Algerian diplomatic passport, amid a brewing crisis that prompted French officials to vow to retaliate against what they considered as a series of Algerian disrespect, which included arbitrary arrests of a dual-national novelist, instigation of diaspora, and refusal to admit nationals expelled from France for spreading hate speech as well as the constant use of history to stoke anti-French sentiment.

As was expected, Justice minister, Gerald Darmanin, said France is examining an agreement signed in 2013 that makes it easy for the Algerian ruling class to visit France without visa.

Darmanin said that the French government will take aim at the Algerian officials, accusing them of stoking the crisis.

French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau had said that Algeria was “seeking to humiliate France,” following the hateful campaign launched by the regime through its influencers in France. Algeria even rejected admitting one of its own nationals expelled by France.

Meanwhile, pressure is building up on the French government to review the 1968 agreements which offers Algerians preferential treatment in settling in France compared to other non-EU nationals.

Former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal denounced the accords as obsolete, while many other leading politicians call them counterproductive.