Algeria and Berlin Reconnect with Direct Flights! Copy link

Algeria Gate: During President Abdelmadjid Tebboune’s official visit to the Federal Republic of Germany, Algerian company Condor signed an industrial partnership agreement with German firm Maincor on the sidelines of the Algerian-German Economic Forum.

The agreement includes launching an industrial investment in Algeria and the transfer of German technology and expertise in the manufacturing of pipes for central heating solutions, household electrical appliances, as well as pipes used in the automotive industry.

Under this partnership, the products will be manufactured in Algeria under the German brand. They will primarily target the domestic market, with a portion of production earmarked for export to international markets. This collaboration will bolster Algeria’s national industrial capabilities and support the diversification of its exports beyond the hydrocarbons sector.

This agreement forms part of the ongoing efforts to strengthen economic cooperation between Algeria and Germany, while promoting industrial investments grounded in technology transfer. It supports the development of the national industrial base and enhances the competitiveness of Algerian products.

Algeria Gate : Commissioned by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Minister and High Commissioner for Digitalization, Meriem Benmouloud, signed, on behalf of Algeria as a founding member, the agreement establishing the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) in Shanghai on Thursday, July 16th, 2026.

This important step highlights Algeria’s growing engagement in international efforts to organize and advance the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence.

The new organization represents the world’s first dedicated international body focused on AI and its governance. Its primary goals include promoting cooperation between countries and developing common standards to ensure the safe, responsible, and ethical use of AI technologies.

Benmouloud is also participating in the World Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026, which runs from July 17th to 20th in Shanghai.

The conference is attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, who delivered the opening speech and is taking part in a high-level meeting on global AI governance.

The event brings together senior government officials, experts, university representatives, research centers, and international organizations from across the globe.

Participants are discussing the latest breakthroughs in AI, future development prospects, and ways to strengthen governance frameworks that support sustainable development and secure technological advancement.

The conference aims to create a platform that builds mutual trust among stakeholders and deepens international cooperation, ultimately contributing to a transparent, secure, and well-regulated global AI system.

Algeria’s involvement reflects the directives of President Tebboune to speed up the country’s digital transformation, strengthen its position in modern technology, protect digital sovereignty, and actively contribute to global initiatives in the field of artificial intelligence.

France’s ambassador to Algeria, Stéphane Romatet, has triggered a political storm within the French right after pledging to restore visa issuance for Algerians to pre-crisis levels roughly 250,000 visas a year. The statement came in an interview with Algerian news site TSA, published Wednesday, July 15, in which Romatet insisted that citizens should not be made to pay the price for political disputes between states.

The backlash was immediate. Bruno Retailleau, leader of the Republicans party (LR) and a candidate in France’s presidential race, called it “a tragedy to see our diplomacy forced to bow its head over the president’s concessions to the Algerian regime.” Retailleau leveled three specific accusations at the Élysée: abandoning the push to deport “delinquent Algerians” back to their country, sacrificing the balance of the bilateral relationship, and failing to demand the release of French journalist Christophe Gleizes, imprisoned in Algeria since May 2024 and sentenced to seven years for “glorifying terrorism.”

Retailleau was not alone. National Rally leader Jordan Bardella joined the attack, branding the move a “capitulation of Macronism to the Algerian regime.” François-Xavier Bellamy also weighed in, listing what he believes the ambassador should have said instead starting with visas.

The French Foreign Ministry pushed back, stating that visa issuance is not part of the ongoing talks with Algeria and that “no numerical target has been set,” an attempt to contain the controversy without abandoning the détente track Macron set in motion when he reinstated Romatet in May, more than a year after recalling him at the height of the diplomatic crisis.

The episode exposes a deeper rift in French politics over Algeria: one camp pushing pragmatic normalization on economic and diplomatic grounds, another an ascendant right casting every gesture of deescalation as surrender. Retailleau, mid-campaign for the presidency, has found in the visa file a fresh opportunity to stake his claim as the voice of the hardline position on Algeria. The Élysée, meanwhile, is betting that gradual thaw remains the only route back to resolving the harder cases still on the table Gleizes’ file chief among them.