In brief
Algeria has decided to send troops to Niger for the first time since it sent forces to Egypt in 1973. The move comes after a diplomatic rift that saw Niger recall its ambassador in 2025, followed by a thaw that welcomed the return of military cooperation. Algeria’s soldiers are expected to protect vital energy facilities in northern Niger, near the Libyan border, as part of a broader effort to secure a planned gas pipeline and oil exploration partnership. The deployment follows a vote in Algeria’s parliaments that supported the use of a 2020 constitutional provision allowing overseas military deployments, marking a significant shift in the country’s long‑standing policy of not sending forces abroad.
Algeria is to send troops to Niger in its first foreign deployment since the Arab‑Israeli war in 1973.
After a visit by Niger’s defence minister to Algiers, the Sahelian state announced it would deploy soldiers to the northern part of its neighbour to safeguard energy infrastructure.
Algeria has strong economic interests in Niger, including a planned gas pipeline that would run from Nigeria to Algeria and the exploration of oil on the Kafra region. The troops will protect gas plants, pipelines and potentially exploration sites against armed groups linked to al‑Qaeda or ISIS.
The decision follows a diplomatic rift that began in 2025 when the Nigerien government recalled its ambassador to Algiers. The two countries have since mended relations after Niger’s military leader visited Algiers in February 2026 and after President Abdelmadjid Tebboune sent four military helicopters to Niger in late August.
The Assembly of the People’s National Assembly voted 148‑to‑26 in favour of the deployment, and the lower house later backed it. The move will be the first use of a 2020 constitutional provision that allows Algerian forces to operate overseas, signalling a notable shift in policy.
Senator Belkacem Boulghiti clarified that “we are not sending our soldiers to wage war in Niger, but for a mission to secure economic infrastructure.”
Algeria’s state‑owned energy firm Sonatrach has signed a pact with Niger’s petroleum ministry to explore oil fields that contain an estimated 268 million barrels of recoverable reserves, according to Reuters.
Historical tensions include Algeria’s condemnation of the 2023 coup in Niger and the 2025 incident where an Algerian jet shot down a Malian drone near the border. The current cooperation marks a strategic realignment amid rising Sahel insurgency.
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