DDMA Headline Animator

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Report: Algeria cancels Kouchner visit as diplomatic rift widens

Paris (Earth Times) - Relations between France and its former colony Algeria took a turn for the worse after the Algiers government canceled a planned visit by French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, the online edition of the daily Le Figaro reported Wednesday. The reason was France's acceptance of the US government's terrorist blacklist that lists Algeria as "a country of interest" alongside 10 other countries, including Iran, Yemen and Somalia.

As a result, Algerians traveling abroad are now subject to specific controls at international airports.

Washington recently increased its airport security checks on international travelers after the failed Christmas Day attack on a flight over Detroit.

Kouchner was to have traveled to Algiers this week for talks with his Algerian counterpart, Mourad Medelci. One of the aims of the meeting had been to resolve a rift caused by Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's abrupt cancellation of a visit to France last year.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.