Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement for the media following talks with President of Algeria Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Algiers, February 29, 2016

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the President of Algeria, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, and to the Algerian leadership for a wonderful reception and hospitality as well as very substantive talks.

The main outcome of this meeting is a clear confirmation by both parties of their strong commitment to the principles of strategic partnership, which are laid down in the Declaration of 2001, signed during Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's visit to the Russian Federation. Speaking of bilateral relations, we have outlined some specific plans for the development of trade and economic, military and technical, and cultural cooperation, and agreed on specific forms of networking between our respective ministries and between the business communities of the two countries. We paid particular attention to the energy sector. A number of Russian companies have already established strong links with the Algerian state corporation Sonatrach. There is keen interest from other Russian economic operators to establish partnerships with Algerian counterparts. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has also confirmed his government’s interest in closer cooperation between the two countries within the framework of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum, and in maintaining regular contact aimed at analysing world oil markets.

We discussed in detail the problems in the Middle East and North Africa region. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika fully supported Russia’s policy to build a broad antiterrorist front, in keeping with the initiative put forward by Russian President Vladimir Putin at the last September’s UN General Assembly. Our efforts to promote a Syrian settlement were also supported by ISSG, a group co-chaired by Russia and the United States. Our common position is that the International Syria Support Group decisions, approved by the UN Security Council, must absolutely be carried out in full, without any preconditions, with the understanding that in order to effectively curb ISIS activities, Jabhat al-Nusra and the like, it is crucial to cut the flow of smuggled weapons and fighters to Syria and Iraq.

It was very important to hear the Algerian President’s and other participants’ assessments of the situation in Libya, where efforts are being made to overcome the deep crisis of statehood, which broke out after NATO's illegal action against the Libyan government in 2011. The consequences of this reckless scheme are still felt in the Sahel region, which is drifting towards destabilisation, also due to the infiltration of militants and the flow of weapons from Libya. These ramifications are also seen in Europe, as the collapse of the Libyan state is actually one of the root causes of the illegal immigration crisis. Our common position is that it is necessary to restore the Libyan state by organising a real national dialogue, which would be attended by all political and military forces that exist in Libya without exception. We are also unanimous that while overcoming the manifestations of terrorism, extremism and violence in Syria, Libya, Yemen, Iraq and any other country in the region it is also essential to begin dealing comprehensively with the root causes of these tragic events. I am referring to the attempts to interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign states, to impose other countries’ ideas, to promote the concept of regime change. Thus far, they have acted under the guise of "humanitarian intervention," and now are trying to claim they are fighting violent extremism. Only the people living in the region, as well as in any other country, have the right to determine their own future. This is an immutable principle of international law, and must be rigorously observed.

We have agreed with President Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria to intensify our trustful dialogue on all aspects and issues of the Middle East and North Africa. I am confident that the overall results of the visit will benefit the development of strategic partnership between our countries.