Belgian-Portuguese relations

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Belgian-Portuguese relations
Location of Belgium and Portugal
BelgiumBelgium PortugalPortugal
Belgium Portugal

The Belgian-Portuguese relations encompass the intergovernmental relationship between Belgium and Portugal . The countries have had direct diplomatic relations since at least 1834.

Relationships are traditionally considered to be good. An important link between the two countries is the common membership in the EU , the euro zone and the Schengen area , but also in NATO , of which both are founding members, and in other multilateral organizations such as the Council of Europe , the OSCE and the OECD , etc. a.

The mutual immigrant communities, the diverse bilateral trade and a lively exchange in culture and sport are further connecting factors.

history

King Philip IV of Spain also ruled over Belgium and Portugal
The writer Almeida Garrett became the first Portuguese ambassador to Belgium in 1834

At the end of the 15th century, the Jews were expelled from Spain and most of them fled to Portugal. Later these Sephardi were also expelled from there and emigrated. In addition to Saloniki, Amsterdam and Hamburg, they also went to trading cities in what is now Belgium, above all to Antwerp .

Both countries were temporarily part of the Habsburg monarchy . After the abdication of Charles V in 1556 , Belgium came to the Spanish line of the Habsburgs, which ruled here until 1714. Portugal had meanwhile fallen to the Habsburg King of Spain by succession in 1580, until it was able to declare itself independent again in 1640.

Belgium declared itself independent on October 4, 1830. On July 30, 1834, the Portuguese writer, politician and diplomat Almeida Garrett began work as the first ambassador of Portugal in the newly opened legation in Brussels.

In the course of the race for Africa , the Kingdom of Belgium also became a colonial power in Africa by appropriating the Belgian Congo (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo ). This made the colonial power Belgium a direct neighbor of the Portuguese colonies Portuguese West Africa (today Angola ) and Portuguese Congo (today Cabinda ). The two colonial powers partially cooperated, for example when copper was transported from the Belgian Congo on the Portuguese Benguela Railway.

After the Portuguese Republic was proclaimed on October 5, 1910, Belgium recognized it on November 16, 1910.

In World War II , both countries remained neutral. However, Belgium suffered German occupation in 1940, while Portugal subsequently became a refuge for refugees. Among the numerous refugees who fled to Portugal from Belgium were well-known personalities, such as Otto von Habsburg , who was sentenced to death in Nazi Germany and who was able to get to safety with a visa from the Portuguese consul Aristides de Sousa Mendes .

Portugal's Passos Coelho (left) and Belgium's Luc Vandeputte (right) at the 2012 EPP summit

After the hasty independence of the Belgian colony in 1960, the Belgian military partly cooperated in the Portuguese struggle against the emerging independence movements. In return, Portuguese from Angola also went to the now independent neighboring country, which was initially growing economically, such as the later Portuguese doctor and human rights activist Fernando Nobre .

With the sustained economic growth in Belgium, from the 1960s onwards, more Portuguese guest workers came to the country, who on the one hand alleviated the local labor shortage and on the other fled the underdeveloped and auroritic ruled Portugal under dictator Salazar .

Since Portugal joined today's European Union in 1986, the forerunner of which Belgium co-founded in 1951, bilateral relations have grown stronger.

migration

In 2016, 44,166 Portuguese citizens were registered in Belgium, of whom 35,249 were born in Portugal. The total of their remittances amounted to 78.9 million euros in 2016 ( 2015 : 66.6 million; 2014 : 77.9 million; 2013 : 67.2 million; 2010 : 34.4 million; 2005 : 20th , 6 million; 2000 : 54.3 million).

In 2015, 2,853 Belgian citizens were registered in Portugal, with 829 most of them in the Algarve . In 2016 you transferred a sum of 3.34 million euros to Belgium ( 2015 : 1.97 million; 2014 : 2.37 million; 2013 : 1.57 million; 2010 : 1.29 million; 2005 : 1.21 million; 2000 : 2.88 million).

Town twinning

In 1977 Liège and Porto entered into the first Belgian-Portuguese town twinning , and since then three more have been added (as of 2011).

diplomacy

Portugal has an embassy in the Belgian capital, Brussels , at number 12 on avenue de Cortenbergh . There are also Portuguese honorary consulates in Antwerp , Bruges and Liège .

Belgium's office in the Portuguese capital Lisbon is located at 10 Avenida Luís Bívar in the municipality of São Sebastião da Pedreira . Belgian honorary consulates have been set up in Faro , Porto , Funchal (on the island of Madeira ) and Ponta Delgada (on the Azores ).

economy

Institutions

The Portuguese Chamber of Commerce AICEP has a branch at the Portuguese Embassy in Brussels. There is also a Portuguese-Belgian Chamber of Commerce in Brussels and a Belgian-Luxembourg-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce in Lisbon.

In Belgium, some of the Portuguese entrepreneurs there are organized in the Federação de Empresários Portugueses na Bélgica , the umbrella organization for Portuguese entrepreneurs in Belgium. a. offers a variety of services and offers of assistance and publishes a magazine.

Bilateral trade

Refinery in Leça da Palmeira : At 6%, petroleum products were Portugal's most important single export to Belgium in 2016

In 2016, Portugal exported goods and services worth EUR 2,077.3 million to Belgium ( 2015 : 1,904.5 million; 2014 : 2,010.0 million; 2013 : 1,930.4 million; 2012 : 2,029.6 million .), with shares of 12.8% machinery and equipment, 9.9% plastics and rubber, 9.8% vehicles and vehicle parts, 9.2% fuels, 9.1% chemical-pharmaceutical products and 6, 7% food.

In the same period, Belgium delivered goods and services worth EUR 2,124.4 million to Portugal ( 2015 : 2,092.3 million; 2014 : 1,930.5 million; 2013 : 1,715.8 million; 2012 : 1,725.7 million .). In terms of goods, 20.0% were chemical-pharmaceutical products, 14.7% vehicles and vehicle parts, 12.4% machines and devices, 9.5% plastics and rubber, 6.6% metal goods and 6.5% food .

This means that Belgium was in 9th place as a buyer and 8th as a supplier for Portuguese foreign trade in goods. In the Belgian foreign trade in goods, Portugal ranked 27th among buyers and 38th among suppliers.

tourism

With overnight stays of 388.1 million euros in 2016 ( 2015 : 354.0 million; 2014 : 311.2 million; 2013 : 250.1 million; 2012 : 230.7 million), Belgian tourists represented 3 . 1% of Portuguese tourism .

In Belgian tourism, tourists from Portugal ranked 17th in 2016 with 54,221 visitors.

Culture

Institutions

The Portuguese cultural institute Instituto Camões is based in Belgium a. a. with a language center in Brussels and lectureships and collaborations at Belgian universities, but also at the Portuguese representation in the EU. The institute coordinates Portuguese classes in Belgium from its office at the embassy in Brussels.

There are a number of Belgian emigration and cultural associations in Portugal as well as a large number of Portuguese cultural associations in Belgium.

music

The well-known Belgian pop singer Lio was born in Portugal

The Portuguese fado singer Amália Rodrigues appeared several times in Belgium, where she also released, for example the single Aranjuez, mon amour , which was released in 1969 by the Belgian Columbia with its own cover design , or the 1974 single of her version of the Grândola, Vila Morena , the song associated with the Carnation Revolution .

The Belgian jazz drummer Adrien Ransy lived and worked in Portugal for a long time, especially his time with the well-known beat and pop bands Quinteto Académico (from 1967) and Conjunto Académico João Paulo (from 1969).

The Portuguese group Madredeus began their international success in Belgium, where their second album Existir was released for the first time outside of Portugal in 1991 and conquered the Belgian music charts .

The Belgian-Portuguese singer Lio and her sister Helena Noguerra , who is also known as a singer, are among the best-known names among Belgian cultural workers with Portuguese roots.

The Belgian singer Art Sullivan (1950–2019), who had hits worldwide in the 1970s and sold millions of records, visited Portugal frequently, occasionally sang with Portuguese artists (such as the Portuguese singer Ágata) and called the country his second home. He remained closely connected to Portugal afterwards, appeared there on television in his later years, and wrote in his memoir that he loved Portugal and that his ashes should be scattered in the sea after his death near Cascais .

The Portuguese-born singer Nuno Resende , who has lived in Belgium since he was 12 , represented Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 in Kiev.

Movie

Cooperation between Belgian and Portuguese cinema is rare. The film " The Weaknesses of Women " (1997, directed by Luís Galvão Teles ) is a better-known example .

In contrast, films from both countries are shown frequently at the film festivals in Belgium and Portugal. Occasionally they also receive awards there, such as “ Tabu - A Story of Love and Guilt ” by Miguel Gomes at the Film Fest Gent 2012 or “ The Broken Circle ” by Felix Van Groeningen at the Festróia 2013. In particular at the most important short film festival in Portugal, Curtas Vila do Conde , Belgian works have won several times.

Sports

Soccer

Men
Franky Vercauteren (2015), coached Sporting Lisbon from 2012 to 2013

The Belgian national soccer team and the Portuguese national team have met 17 times so far (as of the end of 2017), for the first time on June 8, 1930. The friendly match in Antwerp ended 2-1 for Belgium. The Portuguese won a total of six encounters, the Belgians were victorious five times, and they were drawn six times.

Portugal was not represented in Belgium at the 1972 European Championship , nor was Belgium represented at the 2004 European Championship in Portugal. Both teams were represented at the EM 2000 in Belgium and the Netherlands, but did not meet.

Occasionally, Belgian players play for Portuguese clubs. In the 1990s, the national goalkeeper Filip De Wilde were under contract with Sporting Lisbon and Michel Preud'homme with local rivals Benfica Lisbon . Other examples are the national players Paolino Bertaccini , Mehdi Carcela-González , Steven Defour , Stéphane Demol , Laurent Depoitre , Mbo Mpenza , Axel Witsel and Franky Vercauteren , who coached Sporting Lisbon from 2012-2013.

In Belgium, the Portuguese community has also established a number of football clubs, some of which are branches of Portuguese clubs such as Sporting Lisbon (two clubs in Brussels), Benfica Lisbon ( Futebol Clube Alma Benfica ), FC Porto ( Futebol Clube do Porto in Brussels), Belenenses Lisbon ( Os Belenenses de Bruxelas ), Boavista Porto ( Boavista-Bruxelas ), u. a.

Women

The Belgian and Portuguese women's national football teams have met six times so far (as of the end of 2017), the first time on February 28, 1998 in Cantanhede, Portugal . The qualifying game for the 1999 World Cup ended 2-0 for the Portuguese. Overall, they won twice against the Belgians, who remained victorious four times.

The Belgians have only taken part in the Algarve Cup so far (as of the end of 2017), but with four goals from Janice Cayman they were the top scorer of the Algarve Cup 2016 .

billiards

Belgian Eddy Merckx won some of his titles in Portugal

Both countries have already hosted major billiard tournaments several times . The Belgian Eddy Merckx won the three-cushion world championship 2012 in Porto. At the Free Game World Championship in Espinho in 1932 , the Belgian Théo Moons could not defend his title.

Both countries hosted three-cushion World Cup tournaments several times . However, while Belgian players won several victories in Portugal ( Frédéric Caudron 2016/4 and 2010/3 , Eddy Merckx 2009/3 ), none of the Portuguese victories were won in Belgium.

Both have also hosted three-cushion world championships . While Belgium won the three-cushion World Cup in 1964 , 1976 , 1990 and 2013 of its seven tournaments, the only Portuguese tournament to date in 2012 did not make it into the last 16, with Belgian Eddy Merckx winning.

Belgium finished fourth at the 2015 European Pool Championships , while hosts Portugal were just as empty as they did at the 2017 European Pool Championships , where Belgium came in seventh. Belgium hosted only one European Championship, the 1995 European Pool Billiards Championship , in which there was no medal for either the host or Portugal.

Cycling

The Tour of Belgium has never been a Portuguese winner, nor has a Belgian won the Tour of Portugal .

Also in the Tour of Flanders , there was no Portuguese successes so far, however, the Belgians could Stijn Devolder the Volta ao Algarve in 2008 to win.

badminton

The Plume d'Or tournaments were held three times in Belgium and five times in Portugal. Belgium won two of its four titles in Portugal, while Portugal achieved its only tournament victory in Belgium.

On the other hand, there were neither Belgian victories at Portugal International nor Portuguese successes at Belgian International .

Scene from the Belgium-Portugal match at the Gdynia Sevens 2016 , a 7-a-side rugby tournament in Gdynia near Gdansk (Poland)

rugby

The Belgian and Portuguese national rugby union teams have met ten times so far, with the Belgians winning twice and the Portuguese six times, twice they were drawn.

In addition to rugby union matches, there were also meetings in 7-a-side rugby .

Other

While some sports are similarly popular in both countries and athletes of both nationalities meet each other more often, especially football, cycling, motor sports or badminton, the preferences for other sports are very different. Thus, roller hockey very popular in Portugal, and the country held a variety Roller Hockey World Championships , also won it very often, while the sport is not very widespread in Belgium. In contrast, darts are much more common in Belgium than in Portugal, even if the cork of the dartboards often comes from the world market leader Portugal.

Web links

Commons : Belgian-Portuguese relations  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Overview of diplomatic relations with Belgium , Diplomatic Institute of the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs , accessed on May 4, 2019
  2. ^ Website on Belgian-Portuguese migration (Tables A.1 and A.2) at the Portuguese scientific Observatório da Emigração , accessed on February 17, 2018
  3. ↑ a b Website on Belgian-Portuguese migration (Table A.6) at the Portuguese Scientific Observatório da Emigração , accessed on February 17, 2018
  4. ↑ Official alien statistics by district , Portuguese Immigration and Border Agency SEF, accessed on February 17, 2018
  5. ↑ Overview of town twinning with Belgian municipalities , website of the Portuguese Association of District Administrations, ANMP, accessed on February 17, 2018
  6. ↑ Overview of the consular contact details of Portugal in Belgium on the website for travelers and Portuguese expatriates at the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, accessed on February 17, 2018
  7. ↑ Contact details on the website of the Belgian Embassy in Lisbon , accessed on February 17, 2018
  8. ↑ Overview of AICEP's activities in Belgium , AICEP website, accessed on February 17, 2018
  9. ↑ website of the Federação de Empresarios Portugueses na Bélgica , accessed on February 22, 2018
  10. ↑ a b c List of Portuguese associations in Belgium on the website of the Portuguese Embassy in Brussels, accessed on February 22, 2018
  11. ↑ a b c d Bilateral economic relations between Portugal and Belgium , Excel file retrieval from the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce AICEP , accessed on February 17, 2018
  12. ↑ Overview of the activities of the Instituto Camões in Belgium , accessed on February 17, 2018
  13. ↑ Overview of Belgian associations in Portugal on the website of the Belgian embassy in Lisbon, accessed on February 22, 2018
  14. ↑ Ramiro Guiñazú: Amália no Mundo. Tradisom , Vila Verde 2014 ( ISBN 978-972-864-436-9 ), p. 129, p. 251
  15. ^ Salwa Castelo-Branco: Enciclopédia da Música em Portugal no Século XX, LP. 1st edition, Temas & Debates, Lisbon 2010 ( ISBN 978-989-644-108-1 ), p. 729
  16. ↑ Art Sullivan in a re-edition of his duet with the Portuguese singer Agata , appearance on the Portuguese TV channel SIC (2010), clip on YouTube , accessed on January 5, 2020
  17. ^ Obituary for Art Sullivan in the Portuguese weekly Sol on December 27, 2019, accessed on January 5, 2020