A disagreement between Algeria and Russia over the quality of 15 MiG-29SMT Fulcrum fighter jets Russia has delivered to Algeria — a debate that appears to date back to mid-2007 — emerged in the Russian press Feb. 18, the same day Algerian President Abdel Aziz Bouteflika arrived in the Russian capital. Though there are some complications to the issue, Russian-Algerian cooperation is much larger than a handful of MiGs. After Russia wrote off some $4.7 billion in Algerian debt dating back to the Soviet era, Moscow and Algiers agreed to some $7.5 billion in new arms sales — of everything from fighter jets to tanks. In spite of the spat over the fighter jets, there is little indication yet that either side is walking away.