France’s Arrogant Obsession with Algeria–Italy Partnership Exposes Neo-Colonial Nostalgia

France’s Arrogant Obsession with Algeria–Italy Partnership Exposes Neo-Colonial Nostalgia

By Dr. Hana Saada

The recent state visit of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to Italy has not only cemented an unprecedented level of strategic cooperation between Algiers and Rome but has also triggered an unmistakable wave of unease in Paris. French media outlets, grappling with the crumbling illusion of influence over Algeria, have once again demonstrated their neo-colonial reflexes by portraying the Italian-Algerian rapprochement as a diplomatic affront to France.

Far from a routine coverage, French networks such as the far-right channel CNews openly expressed indignation over the warm welcome extended by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to President Tebboune at the historic Palazzo Doria. Journalist Louis de Raguenal went so far as to lament on-air: “It is painful and humiliating for us as French to watch these images. Meloni defends her country’s interests and clearly does not fear us.”

Such statements, dripping with colonial arrogance, expose an outdated mindset in which Paris continues to assume Algeria must seek French approval before engaging with other European powers. The notion, voiced by de Raguenal, that Italy should “ask permission from Paris” to build strategic ties with Algeria is nothing short of scandalous. It reflects an entrenched belief that Algeria remains under France’s geopolitical tutelage—an illusion shattered in 1962 and reaffirmed today with every bilateral agreement Algeria signs beyond the shadow of the Élysée Palace.

French daily Le Monde, while adopting a subtler tone, could not conceal its bitterness. Its coverage highlighted the billion-dollar energy contracts sealed in Rome, framing them as evidence of Italy’s “exploitation” of the diplomatic rift between Algiers and Paris. This language betrays France’s frustration at losing its privileged status as Algeria’s primary European partner, a status that Paris squandered through arrogance, broken promises, and a failure to move beyond colonial paternalism.

Meanwhile, France 24 dispensed with euphemisms, bluntly contrasting Algeria’s thriving partnership with Italy against the “zero-point” of Franco-Algerian relations. The channel enumerated the areas of cooperation that now define the Algiers–Rome axis—energy, digital innovation, defense, counterterrorism, and migration control—making it clear that Italy, not France, has seized the initiative to become Algeria’s trusted European partner.

This French obsession with Algeria’s sovereign choices underscores a deeper pathology: an inability to accept a post-colonial reality where Algeria acts as an autonomous, assertive regional power. Rather than acknowledging its diplomatic failures, Paris projects resentment onto Rome, depicting Italy’s pragmatism as opportunism. Yet the truth is simple: Algeria does not owe France an explanation for its alliances, nor will it tolerate the condescending insinuation that its partnerships require French endorsement.

Paris’ discomfort over the Tebboune–Meloni summit is not about Italy’s rise; it is about France’s decline—its diminishing relevance in North Africa, its loss of energy leverage, and its eroding moral authority. The French political class and media must abandon the colonial ghosts haunting their editorial rooms and finally come to terms with an undeniable fact: Algeria’s sovereignty is non-negotiable, and its diplomatic orientation is dictated by national interest—not French nostalgia.