To an expanded, deeper cooperation with the Netherlands

At a top-level meeting in Ghent, Minister-President Geert Bourgeois, his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte and a number of their cabinet members have discussed the expansion and deepening of cooperation between Flanders and the Netherlands. The emphasis was on the development of specific partnership projects for technological innovation, cooperation between ports and an exchange of best practices in education. One of the most striking results of the meeting is the commitment of the Ghent and Zeeland Seaports to become one port company: “a singular event for Europe at this scale,” says Geert Bourgeois.

Meetings at the highest political level between Flanders and the Netherlands have already been taking place since the nineties. In 2011, the decision was made to organise a high-level meeting biennially, with a view to stronger cooperation across many different fields. Since the previous meeting in Maastricht in 2013, specific action has already been taken on various fronts. For example, there have been joint trade missions to the US. Experts set up a joint strategy to lead our chemical industry into a new era. Exercises are underway to optimise our cultural relations. On top of that, our ministers of Education reached an agreement earlier this year to work together even more closely at all levels.

Economically allied

Against the background of a rapidly changing international environment, instability at European external borders and an EU that is in need of finding solutions to shared challenges, the minister-presidents exchanged insights on topics like Brexit, among others. “We concluded that the internal market is of great importance for the economy of the Low Countries, which from time immemorial has been closely linked to that of the British Isles,” Geert Bourgeois remarks. “We both strive to continue cordial relations with this trusted trade partner.”