Bart De Wever, a Flemish nationalist, becomes Belgium's first prime minister from the Dutch-speaking region after a seven-month coalition negotiation.
Conservative Bart De Wever has been sworn in as Belgium ’s new prime minister , following a hard-fought coalition deal that shifts the country to the right. The agreement, reached late Friday after seven months of negotiations, makes De Wever the first nationalist from Dutch-speaking Flanders to be appointed Belgian premier.
The 54-year-old, who has moderated his stance on Flemish independence in recent years, took his oath of office before King Philippe at a ceremony in the royal palace of Brussels. He was then expected to proceed directly to a gathering of European Union leaders a few blocks away to discuss defense and transatlantic relations. Belgium, divided between French- and Dutch-speaking communities with a highly intricate political system, has a reputation for agonizingly lengthy coalition negotiations – reaching a record 541 days in 2010-11. This time around, five groups sought to form a coalition after June elections that failed to produce a clear majority, with talks led by De Wever’s conservative N-VA, which secured the most seats. The new government comprises three parties from Dutch-speaking Flanders: De Wever’s N-VA, the centrist Christian-Democrats, and the leftist Vooruit (Onward). It also includes two parties from French-speaking Wallonia: the centrist Les Engages and the center-right Reformist Movement. Together, they hold an 81-seat majority in Belgium’s 150-seat parliament. Negotiations for the coalition reached an impasse during the summer due to the issue of addressing the country’s budget deficit – 4.4% of gross domestic product in 2023. Belgium is among seven European Union countries facing disciplinary action for exceeding the 3% of GDP deficit limit, violating the bloc’s fiscal rules. De Wever, the mayor of Antwerp since 2013, has advocated for reductions in social benefits and pension reforms, which have already elicited opposition from labor unions. He had threatened to withdraw from negotiations if a coalition agreement was not reached by Friday. An agreement was finally reached within hours of the deadline after a 60-hour marathon session to resolve differences over an 800-page program. De Wever’s N-VA was part of a right-leaning government coalition between 2014 and 2018. He succeeds Alexander De Croo, whose seven-party coalition took 493 days to form in 2019-20
Bart De Wever Belgium Prime Minister Coalition Flanders Nationalism Politics
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