Introduction
Diplomacy is an art of comportment and actions, without letting accusations swamp the country’s prestige and influence. In light of the first and second waves of the Arab uprisings (2011-2019), and the Operation al-Aqsa Flood on October 7, 2023 that changed the MENA region domestic and geopolitics landscape, Algeria’s regional foreign policy has faced serious allegations, and to some extent a crisis. In 2011, the representative of the Libyan National Council in a press conference accused Algeria explicitly of offering support to the Libyan Muammar al-Gaddafi clan. Algiers immediately denied the allegations and the Algerian Foreign Minister simply responded that Algerians respect people’s choice. It was an ambiguous reaction to these grave accusations; officially, Algiers preferred not to get into the ugliness of politics and its messy ramifications; it applied the same strategy during the diplomatic theater with Cairo in the autumn of 2009 over a qualifier soccer game for the FIFA world cup.
This helps us to better understand what motivated Algeria to cultivate the dichotomy of inactions vs. pro-action in its diplomacy. Nevertheless, those days, Algerian diplomacy seemed to find a new approach and new determinants that are adaptable with the imperatives provided in the region following the Arab uprisings. Unlike the 70’s and 80’s, Algerian diplomacy was globally active and offered the country a solid role on the world stage.
