France, Feb. 21 -- Niger President Abdourahamane Tiani travelled to Algiers on Sunday for a two-day visit at the invitation of his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune - a trip widely seen as an attempt to stabilise ties after months of tension.

Last spring, Algerian authorities carried out the unprecedented expulsion of more than a thousand African nationals to the Nigerien desert in a single day. This was the result of a diplomatic and military incident between Algeria and Mali, Niger's main partner within the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).

The rupture began in April 2025, when Algeria downed a Malian drone and ambassadors were withdrawn on both sides, freezing high-level dialogue for months.

For Bakary Sambe, a lecturer at Ga...