International

Hot-air balloons: Belgians take to the skies

22 December 2021

Ramses Vanneste soared to 7,000 metres in his hot-air balloon to achieve his dream of flying over the highest mountain in Africa, Kilimanjaro.

Lous and the Yakuza, new prize

21 December 2021

Forbes magazine has ranked Belgian-Congolese singer Lous and the Yakuza as one of the most promising talents on the European scene in its 2021 selection.

The identity of "Little Miss Nobody" is now known

16 December 2021

The largest hostage-taking of the second half of the post-war period took place in 1964 in Stanleyville (now Kisangani) in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Working towards a link between the Belgian and Danish energy islands

09 December 2021

With the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two countries, the world's longest ever undersea link between two artificial energy islands is expected to be operational before 2030

Belgium is the second largest exporter of Christmas trees in Europe

09 December 2021

85% of the Christmas trees grown in Wallonia are intended for export. This makes Belgium the second largest European exporter of this holiday hero, after Denmark.

A small country with big ambitions!

Covering some 30,000 km², Belgium is not a big country but through its history and its geographic location it has always held an important place in the world, aware that without bridges to others, it would be unrealistic to want to build a fairer and more prosperous world.

For Belgium, effective action on crucial issues such as peace and security, human rights and the promotion of the rule of law, can only be carried out in a multilateral context. Belgium is therefore a founding Member State of many of the great international institutions such as the United Nations (UN), the European Union (EU), the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and the Council of Europe.

Belgium makes a significant contribution to the work of these institutions, while Brussels is home to the headquarters of several of them and many Belgian politicians have assumed important responsibilities while heading up such organisations.

Based on the open and pragmatic Belgian character, Belgian foreign policy covers universal values, focused on democracy, dialogue and regional integration between countries that may have been in conflict. So as human rights improve and poverty declines and a country opens up to a democratic process, if the economy picks up, development cooperation and economic action can be complementary!

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