Secretary of State Kerryand Algeria Foreign Minister Ramtane
Lamamra
examine the U.S.-Algeria Peace Treaty of 1795.
Enduring American Empire: Not a Friend, or an Adversary (Le
Quotidien d'Oran, Algeria)
"The visit by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry comes during an election campaign ... It is unnecessary to note that the United States doesn't need to send their secretary of state, especially to Algiers, to 'blackmail' its 'rulers,' if that is what it seeks to do. A blackmailer, particularly in the case of an empire with the clout of the United States, a fortiori doesn't need to exercise pressure publicly. ... One is never really a 'friend' of an empire, but making an enemy of it is of course not recommended. Such is the way of the world."
The 77-year-old Abdelaziz Bouteflika, now gunning for a fourth term as president of Algeria. The country's opposition believes the United States wants him to win, and has sent Secretary of State Kerry to boost him before voters go to the polls. To ill to campaign, Bouteflika has allies doing so for him. The election will be held on April 17.
Postponed in extremis by "mutual agreement" in November
2013 due to an acceleration of talks on the Iranian nuclear program, the visit
by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry now comes during an election campaign.
And inevitably, the visit has provoked
controversy, sometimes in the form of caricature, as with [Workers' Party
leader] Louisa Hanoune, who likes to depict herself as "protector
of the nation." Hanoune accused Kerry of coming
"to blackmail those who want to continue to rule and steal."
A representative of [National Front
leader] MoussaTouati remarked
in the same vein, affirming that the Americans "will take their share of
the pie," in exchange for backing AbdelazizBouteflika's fourth term of office.
It is unnecessary to note that the United
States doesn't need to send their secretary of state, especially to Algiers, to
"blackmail" its "rulers," if that is what it seeks to do. A
blackmailer, particularly in the case of an empire with the clout of the United
States, a fortiori
doesn't need to exercise pressure publicly. That really is too cartoonish.
Posted By Worldmeets.US
Americans are not angels. They are not
motivated by the desire to spread the freedom their speeches hammer home, but to
defend their interests. However, what must be drawn from these
"hyper-nationalist" reactions is that the timing of Kerry's visit is
not the most felicitous.
Just as the meeting in November 2013 was
postponed by "mutual agreement," so too could there have been a
similar agreement on the date of this visit. The Algerian authorities, ahead of
the Americans, could have decided to forego what they believe to be a
subliminal form of support, and to do without the predictable criticism for
seeking American backing for a fourth presidential term that is already stirring
strong domestic controversy.
But neither the Americans nor a great number of
Algerians believe that John Kerry's visit has an impact on an election that is
already preordained. The fact that the American secretary has come to Algiers
without concern about the electoral climate is neither here nor there. As noted
yesterday by Francis Ghiles, a former Financial Times journalist specializing in the Maghreb, the United States has interests in
Algeria and the electoral contest doesn't change that. He noted that in terms
of timing and because of the Ukrainian crisis, "Kerry's schedule changes literally
every day."
But in general, if the Americans placed little
importance on the election, it reflects the fact that the United States is
dealing with the regime itself and not with individuals. They actually do have
security goals in a region considerably destabilized by NATO's muscular intrusion
into Libya. The Americans also have economic interests in the oil and gas
sector, but thanks to the "shale gas revolution," have become
self-sufficient and are no longer dependent on overseas supplies, even from the
Gulf. The Americans aren't even trying to shake things up on the issue of the
Western Sahara - even if they seem quite open to the Moroccan proposal for
autonomy.
On the other hand, and this remains to be
confirmed, we can assume that they want to ensure that Algeria remains a viable
supplier of gas to Europe if the current crisis in Ukraine persists, compensating
in the event of a reduction in the flow of gas from Russia.
One is never really a "friend" of an empire,
but making an enemy of it is of course not recommended. Such is the way of the
world. But what we must remember, and this is where Hanoune's
hyper-nationalistic speech rings hollow, is that on this world stage, a state's
capacity to negotiate depends on its domestic legitimacy and the support it has
from its population. When this support is low, when legitimacy is in doubt, the
room for maneuver of the leadership shrinks. This is the
iron law of the international game. The external "threat" is greatest
when the system excludes it instead of integrating it. The external threat is
"internal" and "systemic." Well, for the most part.
