Normalization with Israel: “not on the agenda” in Tunisia

Under the aegis of the administration of US President Donald Trump, four Arab countries – United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco last Thursday – have established diplomatic relations with the Hebrew state in recent months. What about Tunisia? Hichem Mechichi, the Prime Minister wanted to clarify the choice of his country. The Tunisian head of government said that the normalization of relations between his country and Israel was “not an issue on the agenda”, a few days after such a decision was taken by his Moroccan neighbor.

“It is a choice that Morocco has chosen freely. We respect the choice of Morocco, Morocco is a brother country, a country that we love very much. For Tunisia, this is not a question on the agenda, ”he said in an interview on the French channel France 24 on Monday evening. “Each country has its reality, its truth, and each country has its diplomacy which it considers to be the best for its people”, he continued, indicating that he had not been approached by the American administration. in this sense.

“No choice for Tunisia”

Last Thursday, outgoing US President Donald Trump announced Morocco’s commitment to normalize its relations with Israel and the United States’ recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed territory of Western Sahara. After the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan, Morocco is the fourth Arab country since August to promise a normalization of relations with the Hebrew state.

In the Maghreb, this decision by Morocco caused a stir, like Algeria, which denounced “foreign maneuvers” aimed at destabilizing it. The question of Western Sahara, which shares a piece of the border with Algeria, has plagued Algerian-Moroccan relations for more than 40 years. The former Spanish colony is both claimed by the Moroccans and the separatists of the Polisario Front supported by Algeria. Negotiations led by the UN have been at a standstill since spring 2019. This quarrel notably hinders the implementation of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) and represents an economic cost estimated by international experts at several points of GDP.

Priority to the migration crisis

Beyond this hot topical issue, Jean Castex and Hichem Mechichi, at the head of a technocratic government, jointly addressed important key issues for cooperation between the two countries in the context of the commemoration of the tenth anniversary of the 2011 revolution. Ten years after the revolution and the departure of Ben Ali, Tunisia is struggling to find political stability. Not to mention that the Islamist threat is still as strong. Gérald Darmanin, the Minister of the Interior, recently came to Tunis to negotiate the return of radicalized nationals in an irregular situation. As announced by the services of the two Prime Ministers, the day before “this visit takes place in the context of solidarity shown by Tunisia towards France following the Nice attack”, underline the Prime Minister’s services in a press release. Brahim Aouissaoui, who killed three people with a knife in the basilica of Nice on October 29, is a 21-year-old Tunisian.

The migration issue is at the heart of the concerns on both sides of the Mediterranean. Hichem Mechichi underlined “the need for a concerted approach between the two countries, based on solidarity development and investment in regions exporting irregular migrants”, reports the Tunisian press agency, TAP.

The head of government added that “France has shown itself to be convinced that the security approach is useful, but insufficient in dealing with the migration issue” and that this aspect will be deepened between the two countries. “Tunisia is a priority partner for France and the Franco-Tunisian relationship is unique”, insists on the side of Paris. Emmanuel Macron had received Tunisian President Kaïs Saïed last June, announcing to him an envelope of 350 million euros in loans. Today, Hichem Mechichi assesses the needs of his country at 5 billion euros to cover its deficit.