Algeria and Mali reopen diplomatic ties after Sahel dispute

Algeria and Mali have announced the return of their ambassadors and the reopening of airspace to one another, after more than a year of strained relations that followed Algeria's shooting down of a Malian drone.

Relations worsened sharply in April 2025 after Algeria said it had shot down a Malian drone that violated its airspace. Mali and its Alliance of Sahel States allies, Burkina Faso and Niger, withdrew their ambassadors from Algeria after the incident, and Algeria responded in the same way.

The dispute also revived older disagreements. Algeria had helped broker the 2015 Algiers peace accord between Mali's government and armed groups in northern Mali, but Mali's military government abandoned the deal in 2024. Mali's current military authorities came to power after coups in 2020 and 2021. Tensions worsened again in April this year when Mali backed Morocco's sovereignty claim over Western Sahara, where Algeria supports the pro-independence Polisario Front.

A Malian diplomat said the thaw had been developing for months. The diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said mediation by Togo and Niger happened before Russia became involved, and that Malian figures with ties to Algeria also helped the talks. Another diplomatic source said Russia strongly advised Mali to improve relations with Algeria, citing the presence of separatist rebels mainly near the Algerian border.

Michael Ayari, a researcher at the International Crisis Group, said the most likely explanation was mediation led by Niger that led to direct contact between Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Malian leader Assimi Goita.

The Malian diplomat said recent fighting in Anefis, a village in northern Mali, helped speed up the rapprochement. The diplomat said Algeria asked Russia to seek a gesture from Mali, which was made the same day. The return of ambassadors and reopening of airspace took place on July 10.

Algerian newspaper El Watan wrote that stability in northern Mali is a direct national security issue for Algeria. It said increased violence there could bring risks from armed groups, trafficking and criminal networks along a border that is difficult to control.

Ayari said it is too early to call the move a full normalisation of relations. He said disputes that have built up since Mali's military authorities took power remain largely unresolved. Mali had accused Algeria of supporting international terrorism and being lenient toward some armed and separatist groups in northern Mali, while Algeria at times referred to Mali's leaders as putschists.

Ayari said it remains unclear whether those disputes have been resolved. He described the latest thaw as pragmatic and similar to Algeria's recent improvement in ties with Niger and Burkina Faso, but said it could mark the start of broader easing with the Alliance of Sahel States countries.

In a report, the International Crisis Group said discord between Algeria and Mali had weakened cooperation between the neighbours at a time when Mali faces growing threats from separatists and jihadists. The report also pointed to shared interests, including a history both countries describe as brotherhood in the struggle against French colonial rule, and family, cultural and economic ties among borderland peoples, mostly Tuaregs.

Ayari said one priority is restoring cross-border security cooperation and intelligence sharing. He said the rapprochement is a good start, but that a relapse cannot be ruled out.