Summary:

On 20 February 2025, the Algerian Minister of Foreign Affairs (MFA), Ahmed Attaf, began his side engagements at the G20 ministerial gathering by meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov. 

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Similar to following meetings with his Chinese, Indian, Turkish, South Korean, and Japanese counterparts, the discussions with Lavrov tackled the further development of economic cooperation. 

The meeting with the Russian MFA also addressed political issues including developments in the Sahel-Saharan region and Palestine. The Algerian MFA stated via press release that the two diplomats “reaffirmed the alignment of their countries’ positions, which are grounded in a commitment to the principles and objectives of the United Nations Charter.” 

This meeting comes days after Algeria officially received two of the six Su-57 stealth fighter jets purchased from Russia, confirming Algeria as the first export customer for the Russian model.  

Outlook: 

The participation of Algeria in the G20 ministerial meeting created the opportunity for Algiers to display diplomatic leadership by engaging with its Eastern partners as a regional power in North Africa and the Arab world.  

The engagement with partners at the G20 meeting permits Algeria to highlight its commitment to multilateralism and cooperation with both Eastern and Western partners while restating its long-standing positions on various issues. 

The discussion with Lavrov on regional development in the Sahel-Sahara just a month after the signing of military cooperation agreements with US AFRICOM reflects Algeria’s multilateral diplomatic approach. While willing to engage a range of partners, Algiers has the ability to remain unrestrained by individual partnerships. 

Preserving ties with the US and Russia while increasing cooperation with China will likely help Algeria benefit from the strategic great powers competition for influence in North Africa and gain leverage to balance each of these powers. 

This balancing approach is likely to serve Algeria by securing its interest in the Sahel with Russia while also restraining Russian cooperation with Mali which Algiers perceives as increasingly hostile toward Algerian influence in the region. 

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