Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever on Friday warned both arbitrary trade barriers and systematic market distortion were threats to geopolitical stability, alluding to both US President Donald Trump and China, without naming either.
Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever addresses the gathering during the India-Belgium high-level dialogue on the India�EU Free Trade Agreement, in Mumbai, Maharashtra. (PTI)
Speaking at a high-level dialogue on the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA) held at the Jio Convention Center, De Wever criticised the growing push towards protectionism and unpredictable tariff measures.
“These days, more and more voices are calling for barriers to go up, for markets to shut off and for tariffs to be imposed. Some do it entirely arbitrarily. They decide something on Monday, revoke it on Wednesday and reinstate it on Saturday,” he said.
Drawing laughter and applause from the audience, De Wever added, “Your applause tells me that you all know who I am talking about.”
“I am not going to say the name, but you know who I mean. They do these things arbitrarily, without any economic logic at all, in the service of one power game after another,” he said, without naming Trump.
In an allusion to China, De Wever also warned against another form of economic pressure, saying some countries deliberately and systematically seek to distort markets.
“Others take a different approach and set out deliberately and structurally to distort markets. In doing so, they inflict serious economic damage on their trading partners in order to make them dependent and turn them into vassals,” he commented.
“These two strategies, protectionism and unfair competition, put our economy and our geopolitical stability under strain and pressure,” he added.
De Wever announced that the Port of Antwerp-Bruges will bring a full delegation to India in February next year, comprising companies and representatives from terminals, logistics, chemicals and energy.
“We are not coming to discuss what we might do; we are coming to agree on what we are going to do together,” he said, signalling a push to turn the India-Belgium partnership into concrete projects as far as developing the maritime sector is concerned.
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He welcomed India’s decision to open up maritime services and dredging under the India-EU Free Trade Agreement, saying it would create significant opportunities for Belgian companies.
“Belgian bridge, infrastructure and dredging specialists have deepened ports all over the world, and we already have extensive experience in India. Let’s build on that,” he remarked.
De Wever also identified green hydrogen as another major area for cooperation, pointing to India’s ambitious plans to expand production and Belgium’s aim of becoming a major North-West European importer of green molecules. “India has ambitious plans for the production of green hydrogen to support the energy transition. Belgium intends to become a major North-West European importer of green molecules. There are so many obvious areas of cooperation, I could go on and on,” he said.
Meanwhile, Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal called for deeper India-Belgium cooperation in the lab-grown diamond sector, including technology and certification. “Let us co-create, design. Maybe lab-grown diamonds would be a new area we should look at working together in.”
The Union minister suggested anchoring the initiative in Antwerp, a major global diamond marketplace, and in Mumbai and Surat, which are at the heart of India’s diamond-processing ecosystem.
Goyal also used the diamond metaphor to underline the potential of the India-Belgium partnership.
“A diamond is formed under tremendous pressure. In a world under pressure and turmoil, let India and Belgium form something as beautiful and precious as a diamond, not just for India, Belgium and Europe, but a diamond for the world,” he emphasized.
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Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said the state was ready to play a leading role in translating the India-EU FTA into concrete projects. “Antwerp is a diamond centre and Mumbai is at the heart of India’s diamond trade. We should think beyond diamonds,” Fadnavis said, calling for Maharashtra to become a demonstrative state for the India-EU FTA.
“Maharashtra would like to be the first state to translate the Belgium-Maharashtra projects. The projects must be fast-tracked. If Belgium identifies a project, we will dedicate a team and work with Belgium to make it happen,” he said.
Before attending the high-level dialogue, De Wever visited the Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB) in Mumbai, becoming the first foreign prime minister to visit the facility.
He also participated in an interaction session, marking a significant milestone in the longstanding India-Belgium diamond trade relationship.