Ahmad 
The Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance of Niger, Ali Mohamed Lamine Zein, arrived in Algeria on Monday morning on an official visit aimed at strengthening cooperation between the two countries.
The visit is a significant step in overcoming the repercussions of the diplomatic crisis that occurred in October 2023 between Algeria and Niger.
Zein was received at Algiers International Airport by a high-level delegation including Algerian Prime Minister Noureddine Bedoui, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Attaf, Secretary-General of the Ministry of National Defense, Major General Mohamed Saleh Benbicha, in addition to the Minister of Energy and Trade.
This reception reflects Algeria’s great interest in re-normalizing relations and strengthening cooperation in the fields of politics, security, trade and energy with Niger.
This is the second visit by a senior government official from Niger to Algeria after the visit of Nigerien Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangaré in December 2023, which contributed to overcoming the repercussions of the mediation crisis between the two countries.
Ali Zein’s visit comes less than a week after he received an Algerian government delegation headed by Energy Minister Mohamed Arkab in Niamey, where it was agreed that the Algerian hydrocarbons company would resume oil and gas exploration activities in the Kafra region in northern Niger, cooperate in the energy sector, and implement the Trans-Sahara Gas Pipeline project linking Nigeria, Niger, and Algeria.
Niger asked Algeria last May to help secure trade routes between the two countries amid the increasing activity of armed groups in northern Niger. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune also ordered the government to strengthen the “barter” trade system with Niger, which relies on the exchange of goods without financial transactions.
The visit of the Nigerien Prime Minister to Algeria confirms that the diplomatic crisis between the two countries is a thing of the past, and that there is a common interest in strengthening cooperation in facing security and economic challenges, especially in light of developments in northern Mali and southern Libya and the sanctions imposed on Niger after the coup against President Mohamed Bazoum in August 2023.
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