ALGIERS -UNS: Algeria has severed diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates and given Abu Dhabi’s ambassador 48 hours to comply with the decision, marking a sharp deterioration in ties between the two Arab states.
Algeria’s Foreign Ministry said the Emirati ambassador was summoned on Thursday and formally notified of the decision. The ministry said the move followed the exhaustion of all avenues for preserving bilateral relations.
Algeria accused the UAE of engaging in what it described as “provocative or hostile” conduct, saying Algiers had exercised restraint and acted with a strong sense of responsibility before taking the decision.
The ministry said Algeria had repeatedly warned the Emirati side of the “serious consequences” that could result from what it called unacceptable and unjustified behaviour.
The statement did not specify a single incident that prompted the rupture. Instead, it portrayed the decision as the culmination of a prolonged deterioration in bilateral relations.
The diplomatic break comes against a backdrop of widening differences between Algiers and Abu Dhabi over a number of regional issues, including Israel, Western Sahara and developments in the Sahel. Algeria opposes normalisation with Israel, while the UAE established diplomatic relations with Israel under the 2020 Abraham Accords. The two countries also hold opposing positions on Western Sahara, with Abu Dhabi backing Morocco’s claim and Algeria supporting the Polisario Front.
The latest move represents a significant escalation in relations that had already come under increasing strain. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune previously indicated that ties with one Gulf state had become particularly problematic, while describing relations with other Gulf countries as strong and fraternal, according to Reuters.
The UAE has not, in the immediate statement cited by Reuters, issued a direct announcement addressing Algeria’s decision. UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash said diplomacy should be based on “rationality, communication and clarity of interests”, in remarks that did not explicitly name Algeria.
The breakdown is likely to have diplomatic and regional implications, particularly given the two countries’ competing positions on North Africa and the Sahel.
For now, Algeria’s decision constitutes one of the most serious diplomatic ruptures between Arab states in recent years, formally reducing bilateral relations to a new and uncertain level.
