As Belgium rouses itself from end-of-year festivities and turns its attention towards the year ahead, it's not only the damp conditions that has us on edge about the major challenges that loom on the horizon.
The stroke of midnight on Sunday saw Belgium take over the Presidency of the Council of European Union, launching blue and gold fireworks to symbolise its turn to set the agenda of EU politics. The priorities had been announced earlier in December and summed up beneath the banner: Protect, Strengthen, Prepare.
But the ambition and optimism of this trademark tricolon is already cast into doubt as the world looks forward to the biggest ever year of elections. The polls generally indicate a global shift to the right as populists prey on nations divided by economic, energy, and security concerns. If Belgium's aim at the helm of EU affairs is to promote stability, it looks doubtful how much EU cohesion can protect Member States from tectonic shifts in world politics.
And on the home front, elections on 9 June could be the moment when far-right parties finally gain a foothold in the Federal Government, depending on whether the Flemish nationalist parties can build majorities that have previously been denied by Belgium's "cordon sanitaire" around Vlaams Belang.
European elections are also held in June and the international affairs might be upended in the US election this November. Closer to home, there's hope that 2024 might at last be the year when the Conservative party relinquishes their grip on UK politics, and a rapprochement with the EU seems probable.
It's still too soon in the new year to succumb to defeatism, and marking out the obstacles is the first step to overcoming them. And although last year came with its share of difficulties, Belgium still offers us those moments of cheer and inspiration, more important now than ever.
What are you looking forward to this year? Let @Orlando_tbt know.
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