Antwerp Mayor and Prime Minister-hopeful Bart de Wever (N-VA) wants to install air defence systems at the Port of Antwerp because "if you want peace, prepare for war".
The leader of the Flemish right-wing party N-VA called on Belgium to "stop procrastinating" about defence in an interview with Gazet Van Antwerpen on Tuesday. If appointed Prime Minister, De Wever pledges to invest in air defence systems at the Port of Antwerp no matter the cost.
"Why would companies continue to invest in the Port of Antwerp if their locations are not defended, as is the case in Rotterdam and Hamburg, for example?" He said. "If you want peace, prepare for war [...] Antwerp must be able to defend itself and I will do my utmost to provide the necessary money."
Belgium is a 'free-rider'
These comments are not out of the ordinary for the party according to Wannes Verstraete, researcher at VUB and Associate Fellow at the Egmont Institute for International Relations.
"In opposition, N-VA always stressed the importance of strengthening defense and moving faster towards the 2% GDP spending [on defence] requested by NATO," he told The Brussels Times.
Now, with De Wever leading Federal Government formation talks and all parties at the table in agreement about reaching NATO targets, calls for bolstering defence at the Port of Antwerp are "not surprising".
N-VA leader and Antwerp Mayor Bart De Wever. Credit: Belga/Jonas Roosens
N-VA's defence policy is strongly Atlanticist, pro-NATO and critical of Belgium's tardiness in reacting to the threat of Russian aggression.
"I am concerned that our NATO partners increasingly view this country as a free-rider," stated N-VA MP Theo Francken after being recently re-elected as head of the Belgian delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
Spending is the status quo
The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has pushed most Belgian political parties to focus more on defence. Outgoing Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open VLD) suggested cutting social spending to reach NATO targets in February. The country aims to reach the 1.8% mark by 2029 and is the second-lowest spender in the military alliance, coming above Luxembourg.
Outgoing Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open VLD). Credit: Belga
While green parties Groen and Ecolo have traditionally been pro-NATO but pacifist, their stance has been compromised within government coalitions. Defence is a "necessary instrument" to uphold human rights internationally "but should never be the goal in itself," Groen's official line reads. "Ultimately, we want fewer weapons and arms control."
Ecolo is in favour of more European autonomy but cautioned ahead of European elections that budgets should be "rationalised" before they are increased.
The leftist Worker's Party of Belgium (PTB-PVDA) remain anti-NATO and opposed to military expenditure. European cooperation should aim to "rationalise military spending rather than increasing it in an arms race."
Flanders or Belgium?
Verstraete noted that De Wever's comments revolved around the Port of Antwerp given its strategic importance. The analyst calls for better infrastructural defence across the entire country.
"If you look at the Ukraine conflict, you see that harbours are vulnerable, and Belgium is very reliant on its harbors for its economy, so it is logical that it should try to protect them," he said. "But [De Wever] should focus on broader investment in protecting critical infrastructure."
