Euractiv recently wrote that “Europe discovers De Wever is harder to convince than Trump.” The remark came after the latest Brussels summit, where European leaders, initially encouraged by Donald Trump’s tougher stance on Russia, faced unexpected resistance not from Washington, but from Belgium’s new Prime Minister, Bart De Wever.

At the summit, leaders had hoped to finalise a €140 billion financial package for Ukraine, funded by frozen Russian assets held in Belgium. However, De Wever blocked the plan, demanding that all EU member states share the legal and financial risks associated with the measure. As a result, the decision was postponed to December, leaving Brussels without a concrete agreement.

The delay came despite a series of positive developments: Trump’s new sanctions against major Russian oil firms, Slovakia’s decision to drop its veto on another round of EU sanctions, and the cancellation of a potential Trump-Putin “peace summit” in Budapest. Yet Belgium’s stance overshadowed these gains.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Council President António Costa attempted to frame the outcome as progress, claiming that the reparations loan for Kyiv remained the main focus, even if leaders could not agree on the mechanism. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, invited to the summit, maintained a cautiously optimistic tone, calling the discussions “not simple but very good.”

But the key question remains: who is Bart De Wever, the man capable of stalling Europe’s united front?

Born in Antwerp and hailing from Flanders, Bart De Wever has long been one of Belgium’s most polarising political figures. As The Brussels Times recalled, he was “once a radical Flemish nationalist who drove a dozen trucks full of fake money to Wallonia” to protest financial transfers from the richer Flanders to the poorer French-speaking south.

De Wever’s political career took off when he became leader of the Flemish nationalist and conservative New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) in 2004 — then a small party with only one federal MP. Under his leadership, the N-VA grew into Belgium’s largest political force, advocating greater autonomy for Flanders and fiscal responsibility.

Despite his nationalist roots, De Wever has gradually rebranded himself as a pragmatic statesman, but his hard-nosed negotiating style and focus on national interests often put him at odds with broader European ambitions. His stance at the recent summit reflects this: a deep concern for Belgium’s exposure to financial risk and a reluctance to commit without shared guarantees from other EU members.

Conclusion

Bart De Wever’s emergence as a central figure in European decision-making highlights both his political evolution and the complexity of the EU’s internal balance. Once known for his fiery Flemish nationalism, he now commands influence on a continental scale — enough to delay a landmark aid plan for Ukraine. Whether seen as a defender of national prudence or a new obstacle to European unity, De Wever has proven that convincing him may indeed be harder than convincing Donald Trump.

Bibliography

Chini, M. (2025, February 1). Belgium’s next Prime Minister: Who is Bart De Wever? The Brussels Times. https://www.brusselstimes.com/1310698/belgiums-next-prime-minister-who-is-bart-de-wever

Euractiv. (2025, October 24). Europe discovers De Wever is harder to convince than Trump. https://www.euractiv.com/news/europe-discovers-de-wever-is-harder-to-convince-than-trump/