The European Union on Tuesday said it was aiming to clinch a partnership deal on energy with Algeria, welcoming Algerian efforts to build new gas pipelines to the 27-member bloc, DPA reported. The EU also wants to intensify its cooperation with Algeria in curbing the influx of illegal immigrants on its borders, German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said after a meeting with his Algerian counterpart Mohammed Bedjaoui in Luxembourg. Steinmeier, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency, said that Algeria had an "extraordinary potential" for securing the EU's energy supply. Algeria is the third-biggest supplier of gas to the EU after Russia and Norway.
