Algeria reinstates ambassador to Niger nearly a year after he was summoned for consultations
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Thursday ordered the return of Ambassador Ahmed Saadi to Niger immediately, following a similar decision by the Niamey authorities to repatriate Ambassador Aminu Malam Manzo to the capital Algiers to resume his duties, in a move that reflects the two countries’ move towards overcoming the tension that has characterized their relations for nearly a year.
In a statement, the Algerian Foreign Ministry said Tebboune’s decision reflects the supreme importance that the president attaches to strengthening brotherly relations, co-operation and good neighborliness with Niger.
The new step comes days after Algerian President Abdelrahmane Tiani invited Niger’s interim president, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, to visit Algeria, adding in a regular meeting with Algerian media representatives that he wished he would visit the country and the cloud passes between us, because Niger is a country very close to us.
Algeria had summoned its ambassador to Niger for consultations on April 7, 2025, less than six months after he was confirmed in the post, in response to the decision of the Nigerien authorities to recall its ambassador from Algeria, in solidarity with Mali after the Algerian army shot down a military plane belonging to it.
In another step reflecting Algeria’s move towards reconciliation with Burkina Faso, Tebboune assigned Hydrocarbons Minister Mohamed Arkab to visit Ouagadougou on Thursday at the head of a delegation that includes officials from the sector, including the director of Sonatrach and the director of the fuel company.
According to a statement from the Algerian Ministry of Fuels, the visit comes within the framework of efforts aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation relations between Algeria and Burkina Faso, especially in the fields of energy, mines and fuels.
Algeria’s relations with the Sahel alliance countries (Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso) have been strained after a series of military coups by the three countries.
These countries summoned their ambassadors to Algeria for consultations last April, against the backdrop of the Algerian army’s downing of a Malian army drone, amid the two countries’ differing positions on its downing, with Algeria saying it was shot down after it breached its borders, and Mali says it was shot down inside Malian territory near the border between the two countries.
