Name of country: Kingdom of Belgium, Koninkrijk België, Royaume de Belgique

Establishment of diplomatic relations:

• 27 June 1951 (Federal Republic of Germany)
• 27 December 1972 (German Democratic Republic)

System of government: Constitutional parliamentary monarchy. Federal state made up of three regions (Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels-Capital) and three different linguistic communities (the Flemish, French and German-speaking Community).

Belgium and Germany share important joint interests and cooperate closely and well. As founding members of the EU, they have forged close ties through joint efforts to build and deepen the Union, as well as common views on its future course and current challenges. Belgium also shares security interests with the EU and both Belgium and Germany are NATO members. They liaise closely on foreign policy and economic issues.

Germany is Belgium’s second-largest supplier country after the Netherlands, and the leading partner for Belgium’s export sector, while Belgium is Germany’s eleventh-largest trade partner worldwide. In 2025 trade between them was worth 105.9 billion euro, with Germany having a trade surplus (11.3 billion euro). The Port of Antwerp-Bruges, the second-largest chemical cluster in the world, plays a major role in imports and exports for Germany, particularly for North Rhine-Westphalia, including the import of energy sources such as liquefied natural gas. A large number of German companies have branch offices in Belgium, notably in the chemical, aviation, pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Belgium and Germany are growing closer together in the energy sector in particular.

Germany’s cultural relations policy in Belgium focuses on promoting German culture and language. German is the third official language and is used by nearly 80,000 Belgians in the German-speaking Community in the east of the country. The Week for German is held every year in collaboration with partners in schools, universities, and universities of applied sciences, and also presents a modern image of Germany. Commemoration of the two World Wars, including the German occupation, remains an important part of bilateral relations to this day.