Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s visit to Algeria on Monday marks the beginning of a new phase in Spanish-Algerian relations, but does not alter Madrid’s strategic partnership with Morocco, according to Spanish journalist Ignacio Cembrero.
Writing in El Confidencial, Cembrero noted that the diplomatic crisis between Spain and Algeria erupted in March 2022 after Sánchez endorsed Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for the Sahara as the “most serious, realistic and credible” basis for resolving the dispute. In response, Algeria recalled its ambassador, suspended its friendship treaty with Spain, and halted Spanish imports.
Despite the tensions, Spain continued to deepen its ties with Morocco without making concessions to Algiers, Cembrero wrote. Instead, Algeria gradually initiated the process of restoring relations by sending its ambassador back to Madrid at the end of 2023, hosting Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska in October 2025 to discuss irregular migration, and welcoming Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares earlier this year.
According to the journalist, Algeria’s shift was driven largely by its simultaneous diplomatic crisis with France. Unable to sustain strained relations with both of its main northern Mediterranean neighbors—each of which had strengthened ties with Morocco—Alger chose to ease tensions with Spain. As a result, both governments deliberately avoided raising the Western Sahara issue during Sánchez’s visit.
Instead, discussions focused on migration management and energy cooperation. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune called for closer coordination to address migrant departures from Algeria’s coast toward Spain’s Balearic Islands, while energy security featured prominently on the agenda.
Against the backdrop of growing instability in the Gulf, Madrid is seeking to diversify and expand its energy supplies by increasing the capacity of the Medgaz undersea pipeline linking Oran and Almería, as well as boosting imports of Algerian liquefied natural gas (LNG), Cembrero concluded.
