Steep New Tariffs on Algeria Give the US Leverage to Press on Religious Freedom

Last week, the United States implemented a new set of reciprocal tariffs on imports from dozens of countries around the world. As part of this broader trade realignment, Algeria will face a 30% tariff on its exports to the U.S., one of the highest rates assigned.

While these tariffs are intended to address global trade imbalances, they also present a rare window of diplomatic leverage for the U.S. government to use against Algeria—one that should be constructively wielded to encourage reforms, including the reopening of shuttered churches and the dismissal of criminal charges against Christian pastors. 

The Algerian government’s sustained crackdown on religious minorities—particularly the evangelical Protestant Christian community—has now reached a crisis point.

Between 2017 and 2024, Algerian authorities shut down all but one of the country’s 50 churches affiliated with the Eglise Protestante d’Algérie, Algeria’s main Protestant association, despite the community’s legal registration status dating back to 1974. The government has cited lapsed registration licenses and vague building safety concerns as pretexts for their actions, but in reality, these closures are part of a broader policy to suffocate non-Islamic religious life in Algeria. 

Pastors and church members who continue to meet quietly in homes or lend pastoral support to their building-less flocks now face criminal charges. Pastor Youssef Ourahmane—who has served his community for over 30 years—was recently convicted under Algeria’s restrictive laws on worship and now awaits a ruling from the nation’s Supreme Court on his two-year prison sentence for tending to the needs of his congregation. Other leaders have received prison sentences simply for owning Christian literature or accepting donations from abroad. 

This campaign of repression is not driven by popular pressure or extremist violence, as is common in other countries where religious minorities suffer. In Algeria, Christians live mostly at peace with their Muslim neighbors. Instead, this is a top-down decision to marginalize a peaceful religious minority. That distinction makes all the difference—because it means the persecution can be ended quickly, if the political will exists in Algiers. 

The United States and other democracies have already spent years urging Algerian officials to reopen churches and respect the rights of religious minorities. These appeals have gone largely unanswered, often met with deliberate delays.

In a particularly brazen example, Algerian authorities recently invited representatives of the Eglise Protestante d’Algérie to a meeting to discuss the renewal of the association’s license, only to send the invitation a month after the supposed meeting date. These stalling tactics, now years in the making, are a sign that diplomatic niceties alone are unlikely to shift Algeria’s position. 

But the steep impending tariffs could finally provide the U.S. government with meaningful leverage to influence the Algerian government’s behavior. While most African nations will be subject to tariffs of 10% or 15%, Algeria—along with South Africa and Libya—will be hit with a 30% tariff, triple the rate applied to countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, and Nigeria. These new trade barriers will disproportionately affect Algeria’s non-hydrocarbon export sectors, including fertilizers, steel, and building materials, which make up a significant share of its $2.5 billion in exports to the United States.

While oil and gas dominate Algeria’s overall export portfolio, these non-energy sectors are vital for economic diversification—making the tariffs imposed today a serious blow to the country’s already fragile economy. For the United States, this moment presents rare leverage—leverage that should be used to press for concrete improvements in the Muslim-dominated nation’s treatment of religious minorities. 

Algeria has been designated by the U.S. State Department as a “Special Watch List” county, meaning that it “engages in or tolerates severe violations of religious freedom.” Under the International Religious Freedom Act, the U.S. government may take a range of diplomatic or economic actions against countries on the list. Tools such as targeted sanctions, aid restrictions, or trade negotiations can be leveraged to encourage progress toward religious freedom. The designation also signals to U.S. agencies and Congress that a country’s religious freedom record should factor into bilateral engagement, foreign assistance decisions, and trade discussions—including moments like the upcoming tariff adjustments. 

The U.S. should make clear that any discussions with Algiers on the impending tariffs will be tied to clear, verifiable progress on religious freedom. At a minimum, this should include (1) reopening the shuttered Eglise Protestante d’Algérie churches and (2) dropping the politically motivated charges against evangelical pastors and other religious minorities, including the severely persecuted Ahmadiyya Muslim minority group. 

To be sure, Algeria remains an important strategic partner in North Africa, and the United States has every reason to maintain constructive ties. But it is precisely because of this relationship—and the economic dynamics that currently exists—that Washington is well positioned to press for change. In contrast to other intractable religious freedom crises around the globe, Algeria’s repression could be swiftly reversed by executive directive. This is not a matter of rewiring societal norms or rebuilding security infrastructure. It’s a matter of political will. 

What’s more, Algeria is not operating in a vacuum. Other authoritarian regimes are watching closely to see whether the United States is willing to stand up for religious freedom—particularly when doing so might come at a cost. If the U.S. fails to act in Algeria, we send the signal that even our loudest commitments to religious liberty can be ignored without consequence. 

Algeria’s Christians are running out of time—and out of hope. Many are choosing to emigrate, leaving behind communities that have endured for generations. If the United States is serious about upholding religious freedom, this is the moment to speak, and act, with clarity. 

Tariff leverage offers Washington more than just economic bargaining power. It offers a chance to defend one of the most basic human rights: the freedom to believe, to worship, and to live in accordance with one’s conscience. 

It’s a rare opportunity—let’s maximize it for freedom.  

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