Algeria accused the French government Thursday of failing to cooperate after a court in Provence, France rejected its request to extradite former Minister of Industry and Mines Abdessalem Bouchouareb, who served under President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and was convicted of corruption.
In a statement, Algeria's Foreign Ministry said it had "taken note of the French judiciary's decision to reject the request to extradite Bouchouareb," emphasizing that he had been convicted in several cases of corruption, embezzlement and abuse of power which caused significant losses to Algeria's public treasury.
The ministry added that while Algeria reserves the right to pursue "other possible legal remedies," it seizes this opportunity to "highlight the complete absence of cooperation from the French government in the area of mutual legal assistance, despite numerous international and bilateral agreements dedicated to this matter."
It further said that Algeria, in its efforts to recover looted assets, continues to face "systematic and unjustified procrastination and evasiveness from the French side," noting that France has failed to respond to 25 judicial requests submitted by Algeria.
According to the ministry, France's stance "stands in contrast to that of other European partners, who cooperate with Algerian authorities with sincerity and transparency on the issue of illegally acquired assets—an issue of particular importance and sensitivity to Algeria."
On Wednesday, the Court of Appeal in Provence rejected Algeria's request to extradite Bouchouareb, citing "exceptionally serious consequences" that could result from the decision.
In June 2020, an Algerian court sentenced Bouchouareb to 20 years in prison, ordering the confiscation of all his assets and bank accounts, issuing an international arrest warrant against him, and imposing a fine of 2 million Algerian dinars for corruption-related offenses linked to car assembly plants. Since then, he has remained outside Algeria.
Relations between Algeria and France have been at an unprecedented level of tension since last summer, when Algeria withdrew its ambassador from Paris over France's support for Morocco's autonomy proposal for Western Sahara.
The situation escalated further in November after Algerian authorities arrested French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal at Algiers Airport, accusing him of undermining the country's territorial integrity through his criticism of Algerian authorities.
Diplomatic tensions between the two countries frequently resurface, largely due to the historical impact of French colonial rule over Algeria.
