State Visit to Greece from Their Majesties the King and Queen of the Belgians

Greece and Belgium: from a common cradle to a brighter future

From 2 to 4 May 2022, Their Majesties the King and Queen of the Belgians will visit Greece, at the invitation of the President of the Hellenic Republic, H.E. Katerina Sakellaropoulou. The Belgian Sovereigns will be accompanied by several Ministers and Minister-Presidents:

• The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Administration, Public Enterprises, Telecommunication and the Postal Services, Petra De Sutter
• The Minister-President of Wallonia, Elio Di Rupo
• The Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region Government, Rudi Vervoort
• The Minister-President of Flanders, Jan Jambon
• The Minister-President of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, Pierre-Yves Jeholet
• The Minister-President of the German-speaking Community, Oliver Paasch.

The official delegation will consist of high-level political leaders and representatives of academic institutions and business leaders.

Belgium and Greece have maintained close ties since their independence in 1830 in the wake of the revolutionary current of the 19th century. From the onset, cordial relations developed based upon a common civilisational ground, on shared revolutionary experiences (giving rise in Belgium to a strong current of philhellenism, i.e. attention to Greek Antiquity but also to Greek independence), on a history of Greek integration in Belgium and on our European partnership (40 years in 2021) and in NATO (70 years in 2022). This robust foundation will allow us to strengthen our cooperation so that our countries can tackle current and future challenges together.

During the three days of the State Visit, the Sovereigns and the Belgian delegation will visit Athens and Attica (region of Athens), and will meet the highest Greek authorities, both at national and local level.

The King and Queen will also attend academic activities organised by the representatives of the Communities and economic activities organised by the representatives of the Regions.

The social dimension will also be present, with a special focus on the integration of refugees and disadvantaged children.