Algeria
Algerian diplomacy focuses on Gaza. The UN Security Council gathered in New York to discuss a proposal for an “immediate ceasefire”, which Algeria put forward in January as the current Arab member of the body. As anticipated by the United States’ deputy ambassador to the UN, Robert Wood, Washington vetoed the proposal as inadequate, announcing it would submit its own resolution proposal for a “temporary ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip. On the backdrop of the meeting, Algerian foreign minister Ahmed Attaf spoke by phone with both the US secretary of State, Antony Blinken and the Iranian foreign minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian: the latter took the occasion to congratulate Algeria on its support for the Palestinian cause.
The Gaza crisis does not prevent Algeria from strengthening its energy ties to Europe. Algeria’s flagship hydrocarbon company, Sonatrach, inked a deal with VNG to supply Algerian gas to Germany “for the medium term”: further details have not yet been released. The agreement is the first of its kind between the two countries and follows a meeting in Algiers between the German deputy chancellor Robert Halbeck and the Algerian Energy minister, Mohamed Arkab. The two also signed a declaration of intent concerning the development, production and supply of green hydrogen, which envisages the creation of an Algerian-German task force. Algeria and Germany are both involved in the Southern Hydrogen Corridor project, which aims to connect the two countries via Italy. Sonatrach also signed an agreement with the British group Grain LNG for a ten-year supply of liquefied natural gas to the United Kingdom. The deal builds upon a pre-existing supply agreement capped at 3 million tons per year.
Meanwhile, Algeria seeks Saudi military cooperation. The Algerian Chief of Staff, general Said Chanegriha, visited the 2024 World Defense Show in Riyadh, where he met his Saudi counterpart, Fayad bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili. The meeting underscores a growing Algerian interest in diversifying procurers away from Russia, which has so far supplied about 75% of Algerian military imports. Over a week in the Saudi capital, Chanegriha also met with representatives from Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) to discuss potential acquisitions in the field of cybersecurity, communications and electronics. In November Chanegriha had paid an analogous visit to China, where he had met with high-ranking representatives of the Chinese military industry.
Algeria’s regional outlook is marked by a heated competition against Morocco for control of the Mauritanian trade routes. At Tindouf, in south-western Algeria, Algerian president Abdelmadjid Tebboune celebrated alongside his Mauritanian counterpart, Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani, the renewal and launch of several joint initiatives for border cooperation. The latter include an 800-kilometers highway between Tindouf and the Mauritanian town of Zouerat and the creation of a new free-trade area between Tindouf and the Mauritanian border. Such undertakings mirror Mauritania’s strategic value as a trade nexus between the Maghreb and West Africa. However, Tebboune’s overtures to Ghazouani also aim to deter Mauritania from adhering to Morocco’s Atlantic Initiative for the creation of a trade corridor between the countries of the Sahel and Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara.
Download the February 2024 report
On March 14, Med-Or Foundation signed a Letter of Intent with the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, represented by its Ambassador to Italy, Abdelkrim Touahria. The agreement symbolizes a mutual commitment to explore and foster cooperation in various key areas.
It is no longer a secret that Algeria and Europe are extremely close – now more than ever, given the current geopolitical context.
The number of African countries thinking of developing a nuclear programme is growing, while collaboration projects with Russia and China are increasing. By Emanuele Rossi
| Head of state | Abdelmadjid Tebboune |
| Head of Government | Nadir Larbaoui |
| Institutional Form | Presidential Republic |
| Capital | Algeri |
| Legislative Power | Bicameral Parliament, Nation Council (High House, 114 Members) and People’s National Assembly (Low House, 462 Members) |
| Judicial Power | Supreme Court (150 judges divided in 8 Houses) |
| Ambassador to Italy | Abdelkrim Touahria |
| Total Area kmq | 2.381.741 km² |
| Land | 2.381.741 km² |
| Weather | From arid to semi-arid; dry and hot summers along the coast; drier with cold winters and hot summers on the highland |
| Natural resources | oil, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc |
| Economic summary | The economy remains dominated by the state, an heritage of the country’s post-independence socialist development model |
| GDP | € 196,8 billion (2023) |
| Pro-capite GDP (Purchasing power parity) | $11.040 (Dic. 2021) |
| Exports | € 53.3 billion (2023) |
| Export partner | Italy 17.2%, France 14.8%, Spain 13.8%, China 4.74%, South Korea 4.27% (2020) Imports: $31.3 billion (2020) |
| Imports | € 44.4 billion (2023) |
| Import partner | China 17.9%, France 15%, Spain 6.89%, Italy 6.61%, Germany 5.69% (2020) |
| Trade With Italy | € 16.895 billion (2023) |
| Population | 44.178.884 |
| Population Growth | +1,34% |
| Ethnicities | Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1% |
| Languages | Arabic, French, Berber or Tamazight. The dialects include Kabyle Berber (Taqbaylit), Shawiya Berber (Tacawit), Mzab Berber, Tuareg Berber (Tamahaq) |
| Religions | Islam (official and predominantly Sunni) 99%, other religions (Christianity and Jews) less than 1% |
| Urbanization | 74,8% |
| Literacy | 81.4% |
The People's Democratic Republic of Algeria gained independence in 1962, after a long war against France. Located in the Maghreb region, Algeria is the largest country in Africa. Overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, it borders with Tunisia and Libya to the east, Niger, Mali and Mauritania to the south, and Morocco and Western Sahara to the west. Its population is estimated to be 44 million and the official languages are Arabic and Tamaziɣt.
Algeria plays a leading role in the stabilization of the Sahel region. In recent years, it has undertaken cross-border political, military and intelligence cooperation initiatives with neighbouring countries.
The cornerstones of cooperation between Italy and Algeria have been energy, the creation of human capital, infrastructures and security. Until 2019, Italy used to be Algeria's largest trading partner globally. Since the beginning of 2022, Algeria is Italy's first gas supplier. In 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the value of Italy-Algeria trade fell to €5.83 billion, of which €3.14 billion were Italian imports (-27.6 percent compared with the previous year) and €1.94 billion were Italian exports (-33.5 percent compared with the previous year). Natural gas represents almost the totality of Italy’s imports from the country, while Italy mainly exports machinery, refined petroleum products, chemicals and iron and steel products. In 2021 the trade between the two countries reached $ 9 billion.
