Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune received his Nigerien counterpart, Head of the Military Council, General Abderrahmane Tiani, announcing the turning of the page on tension and the opening of a new phase of cooperation between Algeria and Niger.
Published on: 02/16/2026 - 21:17 Last updated: 02/16/2026 - 21:18
During his meeting with the head of the ruling military junta, General Abderrahmane Tiani, on Monday, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune announced the end of an “abnormal phase” of tension with Niger.
It is noteworthy that relations worsened between Algeria and Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, which are governed by military councils and united by a confederation, after the Algerian army shot down a Malian drone in April 2025. Bamako said that the plane was shot down over its territory, while Algeria confirmed that it violated its airspace.
In a joint statement, Tebboune welcomed my “virtuous brother” Tiani, noting “a visit that we had been waiting for for a while and it came true, thank God,” according to what was reported by the official Algerian News Agency.
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He continued: "With this visit, we end an unnatural phase characterized by coldness between the two countries, even though the two brotherly peoples continued to communicate with each other."
For his part, Tiani said: “Our presence today reflects the importance we attach to strengthening cooperation relations between our two countries.” He expressed the "common will... to give a new dynamism to our cooperation."
Tiani arrived at the head of a large delegation on Sunday in the Algerian capital, at the invitation of Tebboune, who received him at the airport and also welcomed him at the headquarters of the Presidency of the Republic.
Following the march incident, the leaders of the military councils in the three countries decided to summon their ambassadors accredited to Algeria for “consultations.” The latter responded by withdrawing its representatives from Mali and Niger and postponing the arrival of the appointed ambassador to Burkina Faso.
However, Algeria announced on Thursday that it would return its ambassador to Niger, and that the latter’s ambassador had resumed his duties there.
In the field of energy, Tebboune announced the agreement with the head of the military council to “launch the project to complete the gas pipeline crossing Nigerian territory.”
He added: “Immediately after the month of Ramadan, practical procedures will begin to begin laying the pipeline on Nigerian soil.”
A year ago, Algeria, Nigeria, and Niger signed a series of agreements to accelerate the completion of the “Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline Project,” which extends more than four thousand kilometers to export Nigerian gas to Europe.
Upon completion of its construction, this pipeline is supposed to transport billions of cubic meters from Nigeria to Niger and then Algeria, and from there to the European Union, whether through the Transmed pipeline, which transports gas from Algeria to Italy via Tunisia, or by converting it into liquefied natural gas and transporting it on ships.
While an Algerian delegation visited Burkina Faso on Friday to enhance cooperation in the mining and hydrocarbon sectors, the question remains whether Tiani’s visit will also allow for the return of warmth to relations between Algeria and Mali.
Bamako blames Algeria for its “affinity with terrorist groups,” especially in the border region between the two countries.
A diplomat at the Malian Foreign Ministry told Agence France-Presse, “We are in a confederation, not a marriage. Niger is free to establish relations with whomever it wants, provided that this does not harm the interests of the confederation.”
However, an advisor to the Finance Presidency told Agence France-Presse: “We need clarifications. Within the framework of confederation, we should have been informed and known the reasons.”
Tiani from Algeria stressed: “We are convinced that an important page in the history of the Sahel and Africa is being written today, and each country will choose its location according to its convictions, interests, and the values in which it believes.”
France 24/AFP
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