Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune mneets with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 26, 2020. Saudi Royal Court handout
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune mneets with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 26, 2020. Saudi Royal Court handout
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune mneets with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 26, 2020. Saudi Royal Court handout
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune mneets with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 26, 2020. Saudi Royal Court handout

Can Tebboune turn Algeria into a diplomatic heavyweight?


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For the past several years, Algeria has lacked any real presence in the realm of international diplomacy. This is large part the result of ousted former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika's monopolisation of the country's foreign policy. Now, however, Algiers appears determined to restore its formerly active role on the world stage.

With its new president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Algeria is trying to emerge as a fundamental broker of stability in the Maghreb, where polarisation, insecurity and foreign interference have become commonplace.

Algerians march through the streets of Algiers on 22 February, 2020. Algeria has been rocked by a popular protest movement for over a year. Mohamed Messara / EPA
Algerians march through the streets of Algiers on 22 February, 2020. Algeria has been rocked by a popular protest movement for over a year. Mohamed Messara / EPA

While Mr Tebboune emphasised a desire to maintain a position of neutrality in foreign policy during his inauguration ceremony in December, he also warned: “Algeria is the first country to be impacted by instability in Libya and we will never allow ourselves to be excluded from the Libyan peace process.”

Off the back of these words, Algiers has involved itself more in efforts to facilitate a political settlement in Libya’s multidimensional conflict, which is posing a serious threat not only to regional stability but also to Algeria’s 1,000-kilometre Libyan border.

Faced with a range of political and economic issues as well as the mayhem produced by a domestic protest movement that has crowded Algerian streets for more than a year, authorities in the country are genuinely concerned with any potential spill-over from developments in Libya.

Last month, Algiers hosted a summit of Libya’s neighbours in which attendees jointly rejected “any foreign meddling” and called for a negotiated settlement. Other recent visitors to the Algerian capital include Fayez Al Sarraj, the prime minister of Libya’s Government of National Accord, and Mevlut Cavusoglu, Turkey’s foreign minister. The overall picture is an attempt by Mr Tebboune – however incremental – to build a role for Algeria in the Libyan conflict’s resolution.

The fractures in Libya have polarised much of the wider region and Algeria has not been immune to the impacts of this

Algeria initially opposed the overthrow by Nato forces of Muammar Qaddafi, the former Libyan dictator, in 2011. The chaos that followed that event had major ramifications for Algeria’s own security.

By May 2014, the chaos became a full-blown civil war, seeing Libya torn between two centres of power – the Tripoli-based GNA, recognised by the UN and supported by Turkey and Qatar, and Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar’s Libyan National Army based in Benghazi supporting the elected House of Representatives.

The fractures in Libya have polarised much of the wider region, from the Sahel to Europe, and Algeria has not been immune to the impacts of this. The country is finding itself having to negotiate its footing across the varied and sometimes shifting positions of countries like France, Italy, Egypt, Mali, Morocco and Niger.

Prime Minister of Libya's Government of National Accord, Fayez Al Sarraj (R) greets Algeria's foreign minister, Sabri Boukadoum, in Tripoli, Libya on February 18, 2020. AFP
Prime Minister of Libya's Government of National Accord, Fayez Al Sarraj (R) greets Algeria's foreign minister, Sabri Boukadoum, in Tripoli, Libya on February 18, 2020. AFP

Algerian authorities are also extremely concerned about the potential infiltration from Libya of fighters from ISIS, and the possibility for Libya to become a permanent sanctuary for Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. Algeria views the latter's presence in Libya as a major threat. The January 2013 militant attack on a natural gas complex in the Algerian town of In Amenas and the ensuing hostage crisis is a painful reminder of Algeria's vulnerability to Libyan-bred militant extremism.

In these conditions, Algiers has spent more than $500 million on securing its Libyan border. This figure will only increase with the escalation of the conflict.

And though, in the words of Ghassan Salame, the UN secretary general’s former special representative, “actors inside and outside of Libya cynically nod and wink towards efforts to promote peace” while continuing to “double down on a military solution,” Algeria has ties to various rival actors, rendering any embrace of a purely military solution from Algiers difficult.

In the wake of the Turkish foreign affairs minister’s visit and his attempts to garner Algerian support for Ankara's military intervention on the side of the GNA, Mr Tebboune in January called any escalations in the city of Tripoli “a red line”.

“Algeria,” he insisted, “is against any form of foreign interference and wants to find a peaceful solution to the current crisis in Libya.”

It is indeed very clear that Algeria’s new administration considers negotiated settlements – not “boots on the ground” – to be the way forward.

This is the claim that Mr Tebboune underlined in his speech during an international conference on Libya in Berlin, Germany on January 19.

Libya’s internal difficulties risk compounding existing political, economic and security issues in Algeria, and – if unchecked – may threaten the latter’s stability for years to come. And given the recent twists and turns of Algerian politics, in which a president has been overthrown and a new one is attempting to find his way, Algeria’s policymaking apparatus knows that it must tread carefully in its forays into regional diplomacy.

Mr Tebboune wants to shed the strait jacket that his predecessor imposed over Algerian diplomacy, and turn his country into an active, respected player in regional and global politics. He knows, however, that Algeria cannot go too far without first testing itself with the war on its own doorstep.

Dr Abdelkader Cheref is an Algerian independent scholar in the US

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Three-day coronation

Royal purification

The entire coronation ceremony extends over three days from May 4-6, but Saturday is the one to watch. At the time of 10:09am the royal purification ceremony begins. Wearing a white robe, the king will enter a pavilion at the Grand Palace, where he will be doused in sacred water from five rivers and four ponds in Thailand. In the distant past water was collected from specific rivers in India, reflecting the influential blend of Hindu and Buddhist cosmology on the coronation. Hindu Brahmins and the country's most senior Buddhist monks will be present. Coronation practices can be traced back thousands of years to ancient India.

The crown

Not long after royal purification rites, the king proceeds to the Baisal Daksin Throne Hall where he receives sacred water from eight directions. Symbolically that means he has received legitimacy from all directions of the kingdom. He ascends the Bhadrapitha Throne, where in regal robes he sits under a Nine-Tiered Umbrella of State. Brahmins will hand the monarch the royal regalia, including a wooden sceptre inlaid with gold, a precious stone-encrusted sword believed to have been found in a lake in northern Cambodia, slippers, and a whisk made from yak's hair.

The Great Crown of Victory is the centrepiece. Tiered, gold and weighing 7.3 kilograms, it has a diamond from India at the top. Vajiralongkorn will personally place the crown on his own head and then issues his first royal command.

The audience

On Saturday afternoon, the newly-crowned king is set to grant a "grand audience" to members of the royal family, the privy council, the cabinet and senior officials. Two hours later the king will visit the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred space in Thailand, which on normal days is thronged with tourists. He then symbolically moves into the Royal Residence.

The procession

The main element of Sunday's ceremonies, streets across Bangkok's historic heart have been blocked off in preparation for this moment. The king will sit on a royal palanquin carried by soldiers dressed in colourful traditional garb. A 21-gun salute will start the procession. Some 200,000 people are expected to line the seven-kilometre route around the city.

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On the last day of the ceremony Rama X will appear on the balcony of Suddhaisavarya Prasad Hall in the Grand Palace at 4:30pm "to receive the good wishes of the people". An hour later, diplomats will be given an audience at the Grand Palace. This is the only time during the ceremony that representatives of foreign governments will greet the king.

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Women's squad: Hamda Al Shekheili, Shouq Al Dhanhani, Balqis Abdullah, Sharifa Al Namani, Asma Al Hosani, Maitha Sultan, Bashayer Al Matrooshi, Maha Al Hanaei, Shamma Al Kalbani, Haya Al Jahuri, Mahra Mahfouz, Marwa Al Hosani, Tasneem Al Jahoori and Maryam Al Amri

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Best Goal: Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria vs Napoli)
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Best XI: Samir Handanovic (Inter); Aleksandar Kolarov (Roma), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Joao Cancelo (Juventus*); Miralem Pjanic (Juventus), Josip Ilicic (Atalanta), Nicolo Barella (Cagliari*); Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Duvan Zapata (Atalanta)
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Best Women’s Player: Manuela Giugliano (Milan)
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BOSH!'s pantry essentials

Nutritional yeast

This is Firth's pick and an ingredient he says, "gives you an instant cheesy flavour". He advises making your own cream cheese with it or simply using it to whip up a mac and cheese or wholesome lasagne. It's available in organic and specialist grocery stores across the UAE.

Seeds

"We've got a big jar of mixed seeds in our kitchen," Theasby explains. "That's what you use to make a bolognese or pie or salad: just grab a handful of seeds and sprinkle them over the top. It's a really good way to make sure you're getting your omegas."

Umami flavours

"I could say soya sauce, but I'll say all umami-makers and have them in the same batch," says Firth. He suggests having items such as Marmite, balsamic vinegar and other general, dark, umami-tasting products in your cupboard "to make your bolognese a little bit more 'umptious'".

Onions and garlic

"If you've got them, you can cook basically anything from that base," says Theasby. "These ingredients are so prevalent in every world cuisine and if you've got them in your cupboard, then you know you've got the foundation of a really nice meal."

Your grain of choice

Whether rice, quinoa, pasta or buckwheat, Firth advises always having a stock of your favourite grains in the cupboard. "That you, you have an instant meal and all you have to do is just chuck a bit of veg in."

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