Algeria abruptly severed diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, citing what it called a series of “provocative or hostile” actions by Abu Dhabi — but naming none of them.
The Algerian foreign ministry said the UAE’s conduct had reached a point where it could no longer be considered “acceptable or tolerable,” and that Algiers had “exhausted all means of preserving bilateral relations,” Reuters copy carried by the Daily Mirror reported.
The UAE ambassador was summoned to the ministry, informed of the decision and given 48 hours to comply.
Algeria will also close its airspace to UAE-registered aircraft from Friday, according to Al Jazeera, with an exemption for commercial flights until the end of 2026.
Abu Dhabi’s reply avoids naming Algeria
The UAE foreign ministry said it hoped the decision would prove temporary and expressed appreciation for “the brotherly Algerian people.”
Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE president, posted on X that diplomatic relations should rest on “rationality, communication and clarity of interests” rather than “riddles and signals that require decoding.” He did not explicitly mention Algeria or tie his remarks to the announcement.
The disputes behind the break
Neither government has identified the specific act that triggered Thursday’s decision, but the two states have been at odds on several fronts.
Israel. Algeria opposes normalisation with Israel. The UAE — along with Algeria’s regional rival Morocco — established diplomatic ties with Israel under the US-brokered Abraham Accords in 2020.
Western Sahara. The UAE supports Morocco’s claim of sovereignty over the territory, where it maintains a consulate. Algeria backs the Polisario Front, which seeks independence.
The Sahel. The two countries’ interests increasingly collide across the region, where the UAE has expanded ties with several governments while Algeria’s relations with its southern neighbours have deteriorated after a series of military coups.
President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said last year that Algeria’s relations with every Gulf state were warm except one — describing ties with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar as “brotherly” while accusing the unnamed country of meddling in Algeria’s internal affairs and seeking to destabilise it. He has previously referred to the UAE as a “micro-state.”
The rupture did not come without warning: in February, Algeria began the process of cancelling an air services agreement with the UAE signed in Abu Dhabi in May 2013.
What has not been stated
Neither government has said what specific action prompted the decision, whether trade or commercial relations continue, what becomes of consular services for nationals in each country, or whether the airspace closure will extend beyond UAE-registered aircraft after the commercial exemption lapses at the end of the year.
