Algerian government confirms the visit of Saudi Crown Prince

On Tuesday, Algerian Energy Minister, Mustapha Guitouni, has officially confirmed the upcoming visit of the Crown Prince, Mohammad bin Salman, to Algeria without specifying the date.

After a week of controversy about the expected visit, Guitouni stated that “the Saudi Crown Prince’s visit is an expression of friendliness to President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and has nothing to do with oil prices in the international market.”

In a press conference held in the People’s National Assembly, following a hearing to assess the situation of the energy sector, Guitounistressed that “the visit conveys Mohammad bin Salman’s brotherly relationship with the President of the Algerian Republic, and will not be linked to fluctuating oil prices, which have lately been rising and falling irregularly.”

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Guitouni denied the exposure of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to external pressures, stressing that the organisation’s decisions regarding oil production and prices are free and are not subjected to any interference.

The Saudi Crown Prince’s diplomatic tour will also include Tunisia and Mauritania. In the meantime, protests are raising in Tunisia in rejection of bin Salman’s visit.

Since last Thursday, Bin Salman has visited the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt as part of his first overseas tour since the assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, 59, inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul earlier in October.