About: Flanders

Diplomatic tensions flare between Spain and Belgium over Catalan crisis

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel sought to defuse bilateral tensions at an EU summit yesterday (17 October) after Flemish and Spanish authorities traded accusations over Spain's handling of Catalonia's illegal declaration of independence and imprisonment of separatists.

Spain furious over Flemish letter to Catalan separatist

Spain summoned the Belgian ambassador over a letter sent to jailed Catalan separatist Carme Forcadell by the speaker of the regional Flemish parliament questioning democracy in Spain, a diplomatic source said Wednesday (26 September).

Muslim animal slaughter must occur in approved abattoirs: EU court

The EU's top court ruled Tuesday (29 May) that animal slaughter without stunning can only occur in approved abattoirs, saying a ban on temporary slaughter houses does not violate Muslim religious freedom.

Belgian PM seeks EU help in row over deported Sudanese

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said yesterday (11 January) he would seek EU help to settle a row over his country's deportation of Sudanese who were allegedly tortured on their return home.

Can an ‘EU of the regions’ offer an alternative to Catalan secession?

On Monday, local government officials from across the European Union will converge in Brussels for the ‘European Week of Regions and Cities’. As they meet, they will be well aware of the turmoil taking place in one region in particular - Catalonia.

Belgian beer culture added to UNESCO’s heritage list

Beer culture in Belgium was inscribed yesterday (30 November) on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Wallonia strikes out at Canada

There are historic reasons behind the Walloon rejection of CETA, and a price to pay for post-Napoleonic Britain having engineered Belgium as a nation in gridlock, writes George Friedman.

Belgium mocked for its inability to hash out COP21 commitment

Belgium’s international image is deteriorating further as the country's regions - French-speaking Wallonia and Dutch-speaking Flanders - prove unable to agree on the distribution of monies coming from its national emission trading fund.

San Jeronimo and Edegem are proud of their compost project

SPECIAL REPORT / The partnership between the Belgian town of Edegem, and the Peruvian municipality of San Jeronimo has been so successful that many other localities in the Latin American country come to visit and study the project that composts organic waste and uses it for agriculture.

Putting reuse and repair at heart of the circular economy

Every year, we throw away millions of euros worth of goods that could be repaired or reused. Europe must seize the opportunity offered by the new Circular Economy Package to turn this situation around, argues Michal Len. 

EU holds its breath as Scots go to polls

The EU has largely kept a diplomatic silence in the weeks before today’s Scotland's independence referendum, but the implications of a “yes” vote are broadly seen in Brussels as the last thing the Union needs in its present difficult circumstances.

Will Flemish separatists save the Tories in Europe?

The Flemish separatist party N-VA is once again set to make big gains in Belgium’s triple elections this month, but they remain undecided about which group to join in the next EU Parliament. Could they become the much-needed new member of the ECR group, led by the British Conservative Party?

Flemish MEP row reveals tensions in Greens/EFA group

The Flemish Green party has accused the separatist N-VA of deviating too much from the political line of the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament.

EU court condemns Belgian Flanders for language bias

The European Court of Justice has handed down a judgement against the Belgian Flemish community for infringing EU freedom of movement by only drafting workers’ contracts in Dutch.

Regional independence: Opening Pandora’s box

It is too simplistic to propose that a region could simply remain in the European Union after seceding from its EU member state and that the ‘evaporation theory’ of Belgium's New Flemish Alliance cannot adequately grasp all the political and legal problems which such a scenario would entail, say Guillaume Van der Loo and Merijn Chamon.

Campaigner: Flanders ‘will almost go to war’ over Brussels airport

Flights over Brussels should be more severely restricted in order to protect inhabitants from excess noise levels, says Véronique de Potter from local campaign group Bruxelles Air Libre. But she says the Flemish region, where the airport is situated, "will almost go to war" if flight routes are diverted from the Belgian capital to fly over Flemish territory.

Flemish leader says Belgium is doomed

The stronger Europe becomes, the less important nation states become, Flemish separatist leader Bart de Wever said at the European Parliament yesterday (9 November). He said his own country, Belgium, is doomed.

Belgian politicians begin ‘battle of Brussels’

In the absence of a solution to reform the Belgian state and set up a new government, French-speaking politicians have apparently turned to plan B: laying the ground for a future "federation" grouping together Wallonia and Brussels. Flemish nationalists immediately denounced the "provocation".

Belgium divisions deepen further

Bart de Wever, the Flemish separatist leader, failed yesterday (18 October) to bring views closer to reforming the Belgian state. But he apparently succeeded in consolidating the positions of all the Flemish parties and antagonising French-speaking Wallonia.

Belgian coalition talks collapse, king asks for renewed effort

The Belgian politician leading talks to form a new government tendered his resignation yesterday (29 August), but the king insisted that he stay on to avert a political crisis just two months after parliamentary elections.

Belgium’s anxieties ‘based on false assumptions’

The anxieties of the French and Dutch-speaking communities of Belgium are being exacerbated by extremist politicians, according to Jean-Michel de Waele, professor of political science at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. In an interview with EURACTIV, he argues that only "national therapy" can help the country shackle its demons.

Analyst: Best Belgian politicians work for EU

Belgium could have avoided early elections to be held on Sunday (13 June) if its experienced politicians had stayed in national politics, Jean-Michel de Waele, professor of political science at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), told EURACTIV in an exclusive interview.