Sophie Wilmès chairs the ministerial meeting of the International Coalition against Daesh
On March 30, 2021, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès co-chaired with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken a virtual ministerial meeting of the International Coalition to defeat Daesh. This meeting in restricted format brings together the 32 States and international organizations most involved in its action.
Today’s ministerial meeting demonstrated the unity…
Sophie Wilmès meets her American counterpart Antony J. Blinken
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès received her American counterpart Antony Blinken at the Egmont Palace today for a first bilateral meeting. Both ministers participated in the NATO ministerial for the past two days. It is Secretary Blinken’s first visit to Europe since the Biden administration took office.
The meeting took place in a cordial atmosphere and…
65th session of the UN- Commission on the Status of Women
General Debate – Intervention of Belgium
Dear Mister Chair,
Distinguished representatives,
Ladies and gentlemen,
As the UN Secretary General recently said: gender equality is perhaps the world’s greatest human rights challenge. More than 25 years ago, we committed ourselves in Beijing to take bold steps to achieve this goal. Women’s unequal share of power and decision-making was 25 years…
Sophie Wilmès highlights Belgian leadership in the fight against falsified medical products
The 14th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice was held in Kyoto (Japan) from March 7 to 11, partly virtually. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès participated in an event organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on the issue of falsified medical products. This is an issue of particular importance for Belgium:…
Sophie Wilmès presents Belgian priorities in Human Rights Council
Today, February 22, the 46th session of the UN Human Rights Council started in Geneva and will continue until March 23. On this occasion, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sophie addressed the ministerial part of the session. She presented the priorities of the Belgian government and shared some reflections on the current challenges in the field of human rights.
The promotion…
Sophie Wilmès calls for further efforts towards nuclear disarmament
On Monday, 22 February, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès addressed the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva during its high-level segment. The Conference on Disarmament, of which Belgium is a permanent member, was established in 1979. To date, it is the only multilateral instrument dedicated to the negotiation of disarmament agreements. Disarmament and…
Benelux Foreign Ministers host meeting with ICC Prosecutor and their EU colleagues
Today, February 22nd, in the context of the Belgian Presidency of the Benelux, Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès invited the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Ms. Fatou Bensouda, and her fellow EU Foreign Ministers for an informal meeting with the 27 EU Ministers ahead of the monthly Foreign Affairs Council. Ms. Bensouda started her mandate as Prosecutor in…
Sophie Wilmès emphasizes continued Belgian commitment to children’s rights on International Day against the Use of Child Soldiers
On the occasion of the International Day against the Use of Child Soldiers, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès reaffirms Belgium’s commitment to improving the protection of children in armed conflict. The United Nations aims to improve the situation of these children by addressing the six most serious violations of children’s rights: killing and…
Interview BBC World News on the violent protests on Capitol Hill
Democracy is fragile and never acquired. What happened at the Capitol in Washington demonstrated that. Belgium considers respect for democratic institutions & values essential in all relations, including those with the US, who is and will always be one of our closest allies. You can find the interview on BBC World News here.
International Human Rights Day: Belgium continues to advocate for the universality of human rights
Today is the International Human Rights Day. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès and Minister of Development Cooperation Meryame Kitir underline that Belgium remains committed to the protection and promotion of all human rights for all.
This is more necessary than ever. The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be a worldwide stress test for human rights. Unfortunately,…