Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib has issued an apology to the House Foreign Relations Committee for her involvement in the Brussels summit controversy. Lahbib faced criticism in recent
weeks for granting visas to a delegation of 14 Iranians who attended the event. The incident raised speculation about the potential resignation of the minister.
The politician from the MR party (French-speaking liberals) acknowledged that she should have expressed herself differently and expressed regret for any individuals who felt intimidated or endangered by the presence of the Iranian delegation in Brussels. Lahbib emphasized the importance of political decisions considering the reality and perception of the situation. She offered her apology during a session in the Belgian parliament's Foreign Relations Committee on Monday.
Resignation Speculation
The attendance of a 14-member Iranian delegation, including Tehran's mayor Alireza Zakani, at the Brussels Urban Summit sparked widespread criticism earlier this month. Brussels Secretary of State Pascal Smet faced allegations that his office pressured Belgium's federal Foreign Affairs ministry to grant visas to the Iranians despite initial negative advice.
Following the revelation that the Brussels region had covered the accommodation expenses for the Iranian and Russian officials, Smet resigned. While a potential resignation from Foreign Minister Lahbib was considered possible, it was deemed unlikely until now.
Diplomatic Incident
Lahbib was questioned about the summit controversy last Wednesday by the parliamentary Foreign Affairs committee. The opposition and coalition partners, including the Greens and Social Democrats, heavily criticized the "diplomatic fiasco." Prime Minister Alexander De Croo defended the Foreign Minister by referring to the context in which the invitations were sent. He explained that the invitations were issued in March during negotiations for the release of Olivier Vandecasteele, an NGO worker who had been held in an Iranian prison for over a year.
De Croo argued that refusing the delegation's attendance would have caused a significant diplomatic incident and would not have improved the situation for the imprisoned Europeans. The Foreign Minister's office consulted with the Prime Minister's office, which ultimately approved the decision. Photo by IAEA Imagebank, Wikimedia commons.