Didier Reynders launches Belgian campaign for a seat in the UN Security Council

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders, together with Their Majesties the King and Queen, just launched the Belgian campaign for a seat as a non-permanent member in the UN Security Council for the period 2019-2020. He unveiled the campaign logo and the slogan: “Fostering Consensus, Acting for Peace”. These symbolize the long Belgian tradition as a mediator, in which the Belgian diplomacy always seeks consensus and brings together parties around peaceful solutions to conflicts. This multilateral tradition is in Belgian’s ‘Diplomatic DNA’.

This launch is the beginning of a campaign that will last for three years, until the election in June 2018. Didier Reynders: “We want to mobilize our network of contacts, not only among public authorities, to support our campaign: scholars, businessmen/women and civil society. All our citizens, convinced by the objectives and principles of the UN Charter, are called on to contribute to the success of Belgium’s candidacy.”

Several Belgian ‘goodwill ambassadors’ for the UN, such as Ozark Henry, Goedele Liekens, Helmut Lotti, Tom Waes and Axelle Red attended the launch, as well as the Brussels-based diplomatic corps and representatives of UN agencies. The launch followed a conference on the role of Belgium during 70 years of United Nations, with the participation of Belgians who play a leading role around the organization:  Serge Brammertz, Jacques Rogge, Olivier De Schutter, Marleen Temmerman and Jean-Pascal van Ypersele.

Belgium is a founding member of the UN, former prime minister Paul-Henri Spaak was the first President of the General Assembly in 1946. Our country already held five times a seat in the UN Security Council, and thus actively contributed to the development of several innovative tools for conflict management, mediation and peacebuilding.