A Comparative Study of Relations between Federated Entities in the Foreign Policy System in French-Speaking Belgium

By Françoise Massart-Piérard
English

In this paper we examine a few aspects of the foreign policy of Belgian federated authorities for the purposes of comparison. Thus, using an inductive approach, we shall consider the dynamics of the restructuring of inter-federal relations produced by international action, which in turn leads to a profound change in the institutional structure of the State. It appears that even though the adjustments that have been made while simultaneously practicing cooperative federalism, they can neither prevent new moves towards the de-federalization of policies still in the hands of the federal State, nor curb the multi-faceted movement towards the separation of the country into two communities. The federated entities in francophone Belgium have been selected for this analysis because they combine diversity and proximity and also because in the south of the country, unlike in Flanders, certain rivalries between regions (Wallonia and Brussels) and between the regions and the communities (French community of Belgium and the German-speaking community) persist.

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