Tag: Brussels

Negotiators from the eight political parties involved in coalition talks have reached an agreement over the weekend to overhaul the Belgian state, lifting a major stumbling bloc on the way to forming a new government.

Brussels is the capital of Belgium and the capital of the European Union, both of which are going through severe crises. Foreign EU citizens represent a fifth of Brussels' population and an increasingly large segment of its economy. Yet they are almost absent from its political life. Can this multicultural city be a model of coexistence and integration, asks Alain Deneef, founder of the think-tank Aula Magna.

On the country's national day, Belgium could end a 400-day long stalemate on forming a new government as the Flemish conservative party agreed to enter coalition talks, but this time without the winner of last year's elections, the separatist party N-VA.

The EU opened talks on an association agreement with Georgia yesterday (15 July) in a move that will boost the former Soviet republic's hopes of forging closer ties with the West. The agreement, however, does not promise future EU accession.

Squabbling among Brussels authorities has derailed town planning throughout the Belgian capital's recent history, alleges a study published this week by a think-tank based in the city.