Content with an official "orphan" account on the communication platforms and an almost non-existent appearance on the media, Tunisian Foreign Minister Othman Al-Jarandi moved silently between the corridors of diplomatic work inside and outside the country.

Away from the spotlight of fame, Al-Jarandi rose to positions in the diplomatic corps of various ranks and details, and ended up as "master" of the foreign ministry in more than one government that followed Tunisia since the fall of the regime of late President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

Even after the exceptional measures that extended the authority of President Qais Saeed since July 2021, Prime Minister Najla Boden chose to keep Al-Jarndi, 71, at the head of this sovereign ministry until today.

Before joining the Boden government, Al-Jarundi joined the presidential team at the Carthage Palace in the plan of a first advisor in charge of diplomatic affairs, and then he was summoned on August 20, 2020 to the government of Hisham Al-Mashishi, which Saeed later dismissed.

Fruitful bilateral working session with my counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi, Japanese Foreign Minister.

We discussed ways to develop Tunisian-Japanese relations and transform the available opportunities in various fields into tangible partnerships. We signed an agreement for technical cooperation and a memorandum of understanding on the joint mechanism for exchanging greenhouse gas reductions pic.twitter.com/pNle8dFA4Z

— Othman Jerandi (@OJerandi) August 28, 2022

UN missions

During his career, Al-Jarundi took charge of sensitive international conflict files, as he was dispatched on UN missions on behalf of the UN Security Council to 7 African countries, East Timor and Kosovo.

With the exacerbation of the political, economic and social crises in the country, and what was considered aftershocks that followed Saeed's decision to dissolve parliament and the government and seize all powers, the bet on the diplomatic role as a way to salvation increased, according to observers.

On the impact of this role and its insinuations, the experienced minister's sun emerged in the arenas of international politics and its scenes, and new Tunisian diplomatic features began to appear in the open, some went to describe it as "diplomacy of interests and axes."

Among those who believe that al-Jarundi deserves to be described as "the architect of the new Tunisian diplomacy" and those who believe that he is just a "pawn" in the hands of the president carrying out the orders dictated by him, assessments of him varied.

Al-Jarundi (left) during a previous press conference with German counterpart (Reuters)

It is proposed but not implemented

In this context, former Tunisian Foreign Minister Ahmed Wanis says that Al-Jarundi presents some draft resolutions before their implementation to the Presidency of the Republic, but he only implements what the President approves.

Wanis added - in his speech to Al-Jazeera Net - that the decision to host the leader of the Liberation Front of the Valley of Gold and Saguia Hamra (Polisario) Ibrahim Ghali to attend the Japanese-African summit (TICAD) recently hosted by Tunisia "is certainly the decision of the President of the Republic, Qais Said, and Al-Grandi has nothing to do with it."

Ghali's summons to the summit and his reception by the Tunisian president sparked a diplomatic crisis between Rabat and Tunisia, after which the two countries exchanged the withdrawal of ambassadors in a precedent described as dangerous for Tunisian foreign policy, which never deviated from "positive neutrality" during the time of the late presidents, Habib Bourguiba and Ben Ali, and even after the revolution.

Regarding the continuity of Al-Jarundi in more than one government since the 2011 revolution, Wanis considered that this does not necessarily mean that he succeeded in his duties, stressing that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is a very heavy and prestigious portfolio, and it is one of the ministries of sovereignty.

In evaluating Al-Jarundi's performance, Wanes said that the outcome is acceptable, given that the man did not make great achievements, but he also did not commit diplomatic mistakes and did not enter into disputes, in terms of major diplomatic axes.

relative success

For his part, analyst and expert in political affairs, Hisham Al-Hajji, believes that Al-Jarundi is dictating what the president dictates, and this is evident from the course of events, the activity of Tunisian diplomacy, and Tunisia's positions in its Maghreb, Arab, African and Mediterranean surroundings, as he put it.

Al-Hajji confirmed - in his speech to Al-Jazeera Net - that the new constitution drawn up by Qais Saeed places the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under its exclusive contents.

And the spokesman adds, "In fairness, Al-Jarandi's stay in more than one successive government since 2011 is an indication of his success in some diplomatic files and issues for Tunisia."

However, in return for this success, which Al-Hajji considered relative, the political analyst believes that "there is a complete failure of Al-Jarundi in managing the file of Tunisians residing abroad and the status of diplomatic representations, embassies and consulates," which negatively affected attracting economic investments and tourism, he said.