Algeria officially severed all diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, September 10, 2026, ordering the Emirati ambassador to leave the country within 48 hours following years of escalating geopolitical friction.
​The announcement was made via a broadcast by Algerian State Television and confirmed in a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Algiers.
Foreign ministry officials stated that the decision was finalized during a Thursday morning meeting at the ministry headquarters, where the UAE ambassador was formally summoned and delivered the expulsion notice.
​According to official statements, Algiers took the drastic step following “a series of provocative and hostile actions” by Abu Dhabi.
​”Algeria has decided to cut diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates following the exhaustion of all means to preserve bilateral relations,” the foreign ministry said in its official statement. “Algeria spared no effort to draw the Emirati side’s attention to, and to warn it against, the dire consequences that could result from its regrettable and unjustified conduct.”
​The breakdown follows months of public friction led by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who has repeatedly criticized Abu Dhabi’s foreign policy in the region.
In a televised address broadcast nationwide from the El Mouradia Presidential Palace in July, President Tebboune referred to the UAE’s influence as a destabilizing force.
​”Wherever they set foot, blood flows,” President Tebboune said during the July interview, accusing the UAE of interfering in the domestic affairs of North African and Sahel nations. “We want them to stay away so that blood does not flow in our country.”
​Relations between the two Arab League member states have steadily disintegrated over several key strategic divides:
Regional Alliances: Algeria remains a staunch supporter of the Palestinian cause and strongly opposes the 2020 U.S.-brokered Abraham Accords, which normalized ties between the UAE and Israel.
Western Sahara: The UAE has openly supported Morocco’s sovereignty claims over Western Sahara, opening a consulate in Laayoune, while Algeria backs the pro-independence Polisario Front.
Sahel Dynamics: Tensions expanded into the Sahel region, where Algiers accuses Abu Dhabi of funding proxy factions and military regimes near Algeria’s southern borders.
​In addition to expelling diplomatic staff, Algeria’s Ministry of Transport announced Thursday afternoon that it will close Algerian airspace to all UAE-registered aircraft and finalize the cancellation of a bilateral air services agreement between Algiers and Abu Dhabi.
​The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abu Dhabi had not issued a formal counter-response as of Thursday evening.
