Algeria has severed its diplomatic ties with the UAE over what it described as provocative and hostile actions despite repeated warnings. The country’s foreign ministry announced the decision to cut ties with Abu Dhabi on Thursday in a statement. It comes after years of brewing diplomatic row over a range of issues.
Al Jazeera, quoting Ennahar TV, an Algerian news channel, reported that Algeria plans to close its airspace to all UAE-registered civilian and military aircraft starting Friday. But it will allow UAE commercial flights to and from Algiers to use its airspace until the end of 2026, when the current contract expires. The ministry also said it had summoned the UAE ambassador to inform them of the decision and give 48 hours to comply.
Algeria stated that it was opting to sever ties with the UAE because it had “exhausted all means of preserving bilateral relations.” However, the UAE, in response to this, said it hoped Algeria’s decision to cut diplomatic ties would be “temporary.” “In light of the decision by the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria to sever relations with the United Arab Emirates, the UAE reaffirms the importance it attaches to its relations with all countries and its commitment to developing and strengthening them to serve shared interests and promote understanding, cooperation and prosperity,” the foreign ministry said on X.
A reason for the strained relations between both countries has been their differing stance on regional issues, particularly on the normalisation of relations with Israel. The UAE normalised relations with Israel in 2020 after President Donald Trump successfully brokered a deal between both countries. The deal took Palestinian leaders by surprise and led to the recall of the Palestinian ambassador to the UAE.
At the time, a spokesman for President Mahmoud Abbas referred to the deal as