Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Europe

First Advisor

Nova Robinson

Abstract

France and Algeria have long been connected, first by colonization and later through their shared histories and migratory flows. In the 1960s and 1970s, following Algerian independence, the Algerian government maintained connections with its immigrant community in France through collaboration with the French government on language and religious education and media programming. Today, as tensions rise between the two countries due to reciprocal resentment over the aftereffects of colonialism and recent international disagreements, it is necessary to examine how the Algerian government understands its own connection to and responsibility for the ever-growing population of Algerian immigrants in France. By examining official Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) communiqués from 2025 and 2026 relating to immigration disputes between France and Algeria, this study examines the Algerian government’s relationship with its nationals abroad. Even as disagreement between France and Algeria increases, the Algerian government still shows a strong desire to remain connected to Algerian immigrants in France. The Algerian government seeks to protect Algerian nationals in France from what they perceive as unjust policies by France through official means like offering consular protection and imposing identical measures towards French citizens in Algeria. This paper argues that shared memories of French persecution and violence during colonization and the Algerian War of Independence increase the intensity of the Algerian government’s advocacy for and protection of Algerian nationals in France, disregarding the necessity of collaboration between the two nations linked closely by migration.

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