Belgian defence minister: ‘No decision yet' on military support for Gulf states

There is “no decision yet” on the request for defensive support from the Gulf states of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This was stated by Belgian defence minister Theo Francken after a core cabinet meeting on Friday. “We will look into it further,” he said.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have asked Belgium for military support to fend off attacks from Iran – defensive capabilities, in other words. Since the Israeli-American operation in Iran, the regime has been striking back with massive missile and drone attacks on the Gulf states. For the time being, the air defence system is still largely able to repel this barrage, but stocks of anti-aircraft missiles are dwindling rapidly.

The request from both Gulf states has been examined by the defence staff over the past few days. Reportedly, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi are not asking for specific equipment, but have made a more general request. Belgium has, however, recently invested in drone defence and detection systems. It is possible that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have set their sights on these.

It is the government that must decide on any military deployment abroad. The core cabinet discussed the matter on Friday morning, but no decision has yet been reached. “We will look into it further,” said defence minister Theo Francken (N-VA) as he left the meeting. He gave no further comment.

It was already apparent last week that the government is divided over military support for the Gulf states. For CD&V and Vooruit, it is out of the question: Saudi Arabia and the UAE are not NATO allies, and Belgium would do well to stay well away from the chaotic war being waged by US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is their reasoning. The N-VA, MR and Les Engagés, however, are in favour of defensive aid.

^{Minister of Defence Theo Francken © BELGA PHOTO ERIC LALMAND}