Belgium turns to the right as new PM De Wever sworn in
Conservative Bart De Wever, 54, has also sought regional autonomy for his northern Flanders
Conservative Bart De Wever was sworn in on Monday as Belgium’s new prime minister, after striking a hard-fought coalition deal that moves the country to the right.
Struck late Friday after seven months of tortuous negotiations, the agreement makes De Wever the first nationalist from Dutch-speaking Flanders to be named Belgian premier.
The 54-year-old – who in recent years has backed off on calls for Flanders to become an independent country – took the oath of office before King Philippe, in a ceremony at the royal palace in Brussels.
From there, he was expected to head straight to a gathering of EU leaders a few blocks away, for talks on defence and transatlantic relations.
Split between French- and Dutch-speaking communities and with a highly complex political system, Belgium has an unenviable record of painfully protracted coalition discussions – reaching 541 days back in 2010 and 2011.
This time around, five groups sought to forge a coalition after June elections that failed to produce a clear majority – with talks led by De Wever’s conservative N-VA which claimed the most seats.