Foreign minister focuses on Belgium's strategic autonomy at start of Trump presidency
Belgium’s Foreign minister has called for a stronger focus on the country’s “strategic autonomy” in the wake of Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
Bernard Quintin said Trump’s re-election was proof that the US is turning in on itself. “That should motivate us to work even more on our own strategic autonomy,” he told Bel RTL on Tuesday.
Quintin, of francophone liberal party MR, says the alarm bell is ringing for the fourth time, after Trump’s first mandate, the Covid crisis and the war in Ukraine. Among other things, he stressed the importance of the defence industry in strengthening the European pillar of NATO.
Reciprocal trade
He also noted that relations with the US are balanced, with around 30 billion euros in imports and exports. “This is an extremely important partner,” he said, referring to 120,000 Belgian workers and 80,000 people in the United States who depend on reciprocal trade.
Meanwhile, Beijing said on Tuesday that it hoped to cooperate with Washington on trade issues following the inauguration of Trump, who has threatened to impose major tariffs on China.
China is “ready to strengthen dialogue and communication with the United States [and] properly manage the differences” between them, Chinese Foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said. “We hope that the United States will work with China to jointly promote the stable development (...) of Sino-American economic and trade relations.”
Tumultuous relations
During the election campaign, Trump threatened to impose even higher tariffs on China, whose exports hit a record high last year, during his second presidential term, which began on Monday.
The world’s two largest economies have had tumultuous trade relations in recent years. During his first term, Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese exports, citing alleged unfair practices. His successor, Joe Biden, drastically limited China’s access to high-tech electronic chips.
Foreign minister Bernard Quintin at a plenary session of the Chamber at the federal parliament, Brussels, 9 January 2025 © BELGA PHOTO NICOLAS MAETERLINCK
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