State Visit by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam to the Kingdom of Belgium, 23 to 26 March 2025

On 24 March 2025, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam received a ceremonial welcome at the Royal Palace by Their Majesties King Philippe and Queen Mathilde. President Tharman also participated in a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Their Majesties King Philippe and Queen Mathilde will host a State Banquet in honour of President Tharman later this evening. 

Prime Minister Bart De Wever called on President Tharman. President Tharman and Prime Minister De Wever reaffirmed the longstanding ties between Singapore and Belgium, and discussed the strengthening of collaboration in areas such as maritime, innovation and sustainability. They also had good discussions on regional and global developments. They welcomed the growing cooperation between the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and the Port of Antwerp-Bruges, including the signing of an agreement to advance maritime digitalisation and decarbonisation. 

President Tharman visited the Federal Parliament and met Speaker of the House of Representatives Peter De Roover and Senate President Vincent Blondel. They discussed the importance for countries, including Singapore and Belgium, to uphold multilateralism to respond more effectively to global challenges such as climate change.

President Tharman will visit the city of Antwerp in Flanders on 25 March 2025, where he will tour PSA Antwerp’s Europa terminal at the Port of Antwerp-Bruges, which is PSA’s largest presence outside Singapore. On 26 March, President Tharman will visit the city of Louvain-la-Neuve in Wallonia, where he will visit Université Catholique De Louvain and the headquarters of Ion Beam Applications International in the Louvain-la-Neuve Science Park. 

President Tharman will engage Belgian non-profit organizations working on youth empowerment and social inclusion, as well as Belgian business leaders from various sectors including nanoelectronics, biosciences, renewable energy and finance, at roundtables on 25 and 26 March respectively. 

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
24 MARCH 2025