Algeria’s President ill, German chancellor postpones visit to him

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit to Algiers was postponed on Monday after Algerian President, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, suffered a bout of “acute bronchitis”, according to a statement.
The visit has been postponed because of the “temporary unavailability” of Bouteflika, the statement said.
Bouteflika, 79, has been hospitalised numerous times in France over the past 11 years. In 2016, he went to the French city of Grenoble for “regular medical tests”.
There has been intense speculation as to the state of Bouteflika’s health.
In 2013, he received treatment for two and a half months in France after suffering a stroke.
Bouteflika has been in power since 1999.
His current term ends in 2019.
Merkel was due to arrive in Algeria on Monday for a two-day visit, part of an effort to bolster economic relations with North African countries and stem migration to Germany ahead of national elections this year.
The German chancellor was scheduled to hold talks with Bouteflika on Tuesday.
Key topics on the agenda were economic development, migration and security in the region, a spokeswoman said in a statement. Merkel was also expected to meet with civil society representatives and visit a school for girls where the German language is taught.
Merkel’s government is seeking to forge closer relations with North African countries such as Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia in order to speed up deportations of unsuccessful asylum seekers from those countries.
Algeria shares borders with Mali and Niger, both of which are key transit countries for migrants and refugees, as well as Libya, where around 90 per cent of the migrants arriving in Europe via the Mediterranean set sail.
NAN.