Algeria Reinstates Visa Requirements for Moroccan Nationals, According to Reuters

Algerian authorities have reinstated visa requirements for Moroccan nationals entering the country, according to state news agency APS. This decision, reported on Thursday, stems from accusations that Morocco has exploited visa-free access to facilitate criminal activities across the border, marking a new development in the ongoing tensions between the two nations.

Visa entry requirements between Algeria and Morocco were lifted around 20 years ago. As of now, Morocco has not yet responded to this recent decision.

The strained relations between the two countries are largely driven by the contentious status of Western Sahara. Morocco considers the territory to be its own, while Algeria supports the Polisario Front, an organization seeking independence for the region.

On Thursday, Algeria asserted that Morocco had misused the visa waiver to establish extensive networks engaged in organized crime, drug and human trafficking, illegal immigration, and espionage, as detailed in a Foreign Ministry statement reported by APS. Algeria also alleged that Morocco was sending spies with Moroccan passports into Algerian territory but did not provide any evidence to back these claims.

Ties between the two nations deteriorated further in 2021 when Algeria severed diplomatic relations, accusing Morocco of “hostile acts,” including support for a separatist movement in the Kabylia region. In retaliation, Algeria halted the flow of a gas pipeline to Spain that passed through Moroccan territory, restricted Moroccan air traffic into its airspace, and prohibited access to its ports for Moroccan vessels.

Morocco has previously stated that Algeria’s rationale for cutting ties is baseless, referring to the accusations as absurd. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune indicated in 2023 that relations with Morocco had reached “the point of no return.”