Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels, which is the capital of Belgium. The Brussels-Capital Region is located in the central portion of the country and is a part of both the French Community of Belgium and the Flemish Community, but is separate from the Flemish Region and the Walloon Region.
The Benelux Union or Benelux is a politico-economic union and formal international intergovernmental cooperation of three neighbouring states in western Europe: Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. The name is a portmanteau formed from joining the first few letters of each country's name and was first used to name the customs agreement that initiated the union. It is now used more generally to refer to the geographic, economic, and cultural grouping of the three countries.
The foreign policy of the Netherlands is based on four basic commitments: to the Atlantic cooperation, to European integration, to international development and to international law. While historically the Kingdom of the Netherlands was a neutral state, since 1945 it has become a member of NATO, the United Nations, the European Union and many other international organizations. The Dutch economy is very open and relies on international trade. During and after the 17th century—its Golden Age—the Dutch built up a commercial and colonial empire. It was a leading shipping and naval power and was often at war with England, its main rival. Its main colonial holding was Indonesia, which fought for and achieved independence after 1945. The historical ties inherited from its colonial past still influence the foreign relations of the Netherlands. Foreign trade policy is handled by the European Union. The Dutch have been active in international peacekeeping roles.
Belgium is a country in Europe and member of major international organizations like the European Union and NATO which are both headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.
Etterbeek is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the municipalities of Auderghem, the City of Brussels, Ixelles, Schaerbeek, Woluwe-Saint-Lambert and Woluwe-Saint-Pierre. In common with all of Brussels' municipalities, it is legally bilingual (French–Dutch).
Brussels Airport, also informally called Brussels-National Airport or Brussels-Zaventem Airport, is an international airport in the municipality of Zaventem in Flemish Brabant, 6.5 nautical miles northeast of Brussels, Belgium. In 2019, more than 26 million passengers arrived or departed at Brussels Airport, making it the 26th busiest airport in Europe. It is home to around 260 companies, together directly employing 20,000 people and serves as the home base for Brussels Airlines and TUI fly Belgium. BRU covers 1,245 hectares and contains three runways.
Airport security includes the techniques and methods used in an attempt to protect passengers, staff, aircraft, and airport property from malicious harm, crime, terrorism, and other threats.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) rights in Belgium are seen as some of the most progressive in Europe and the world. In 2021, ILGA-Europe ranked Belgium as second in the European Union for LGBT rights protection, behind Malta.
Gustave Strauven was a Belgian architect of the Art Nouveau style. He created more than 30 buildings, using new technologies and incorporating wrought iron floral motifs.
The Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation is the foreign affairs ministry of Belgium and is responsible for Belgian foreign policy, relations with the European Union, development cooperation policy and certain aspects of foreign trade policy. The central government in Brussels directs the network of diplomatic and consular representations abroad.
Prostitution in Belgium is legal and was decriminalized on 1 June 2022. Human trafficking or exploiting individuals involved in prostitution is punishable by a maximum prison sentence of 30 years.
Brussels-Luxembourg railway station is a railway station in the European Quarter of Brussels, Belgium, under the Esplanade of the European Parliament.
The Schengen Area is an area comprising 27 European countries that have officially abolished passports and many other types of border control at their mutual borders. Being an element within the wider area of freedom, security and justice policy of the European Union (EU), it mostly functions as a single jurisdiction under a common visa policy for international travel purposes. The area is named after the 1985 Schengen Agreement and the 1990 Schengen Convention, both signed in Schengen, Luxembourg.
The Rue Belliard (French) or Belliardstraat (Dutch) is a major street in Brussels, Belgium, running parallel to the Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat. Both are one-way streets; where traffic in the Rue de la Loi runs in the western direction towards Brussels' city centre, the Rue Belliard runs in the eastern direction, away from the city centre.
Juxtaposed controls are a reciprocal arrangement between Belgium, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom whereby border controls on certain cross-Channel routes take place before boarding the train or ferry, rather than upon arrival after disembarkation. With the exception of the Eurotunnel Shuttle route, customs checks remain unaffected by juxtaposed immigration controls and continue to take place upon arrival after disembarkation. Belgium, France and the Netherlands are all member states of the European Union and part of the border-free Schengen Area. The United Kingdom, on the other hand, has never participated in the Schengen Area, even when it was a member state of the European Union. As a result, juxtaposed controls aim to increase the convenience and efficiency of border checks when travelling by train or ferry between the Schengen Area and the UK by removing the need for immigration checks on arrival and by streamlining checks on departure. At the same time, juxtaposed controls are intended to detect and prevent illegal immigration. In 2016, there were over 56,000 instances when people were refused entry to the UK at the juxtaposed controls.
National identity cards are issued to their citizens by the governments of most European Economic Area (EEA) member states, the exceptions are Denmark and Ireland. Ireland however issues a passport card which is a valid document in the EEA and Switzerland. Denmark issues simpler identity cards that are not valid as travel documents. From 2 August 2021, new identity cards are harmonized as a common identity card model replaced the various formats already in use. There are approximately 200 million national identity cards in use in the EU/EEA, including 53 million of the new EU-standard cards. They are compulsory in 14 EU countries, voluntary in 9 countries and in 8 countries they are semi-compulsory. Where the card is compulsory, in some member countries it is required to be carried at all times, while in other countries the mere possession of the card is sufficient.
On 22 March 2016, two coordinated terrorist attacks in and close to Brussels, Belgium, were carried out by the Islamic State (IS). Two suicide bombers detonated bombs at Brussels Airport in Zaventem just outside Brussels, and one detonated a bomb on a train leaving Maelbeek/Maalbeek metro station in the European Quarter of Brussels. Thirty-two people were killed and more than 300 were injured. Three perpetrators also died. A third airport attacker fled the scene without detonating his bomb, which was later found in a search of the airport. A second metro attacker also fled, taking his bomb with him. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks.
Volt Belgium is a political party in Belgium. It is part of the pan-European party Volt Europa.
In Belgium, organized public fire services are available everywhere in the country. The responsibility to provide general firefighting and rescue services resides with 34 public authorities called 'fire zones', or literally translated 'emergency rescue zones'. The Brussels Capital Region is protected by the Brussels Fire and Emergency Medical Service, which has its own legal status. Together, the 34 fire zones and the Brussels Fire and Emergency Medical Service employ about 17,000 firefighters in total according to 2018 figures, and as of 2023 maintain 320 fire stations spread over the entire Belgian territory. In case of emergency, the response of Belgian fire services can be obtained through the 112 emergency telephone number.
