Prime Ministers Luc Frieden and Bart De Wever met on 23 March 2026 to jointly chair the 13th edition of the Gäichel Summit between the Luxembourg and Belgian governments. Meetings in the Gäichel format represent the highest level of dialogue between Belgium and Luxembourg within the framework of the Belgian-Luxembourg Economic Union (UEBL). Discussions focused primarily on major current European and international issues, as well as bilateral relations and, in particular, the strengthening of cooperation between Belgium and Luxembourg. This meeting served to reaffirm the importance of the special partnership between the two countries, as well as their firm commitment to cooperation that is resolutely forward-looking.

In particular, the two countries are stepping up their cooperation on connected and automated driving, with the aim of turning the Benelux Union into a real-world testing ground to facilitate coordinated and interoperable roll-outs.

The signing of a declaration of intent on economic, industrial and technological cooperation in the field of security and defence demonstrates the importance both countries attach to the economic and societal benefits of activities in the defence sector.

Military cooperation between Luxembourg and Belgium also extends to the space sector, notably through close collaboration on satellite communications capabilities – which are essential for ensuring secure connectivity and the command and control of operations – as well as in the field of Earth observation through the LUXEOSys programme. The signing of a Declaration of Intent on cooperation regarding the future GovSat-2 satellite marks a new stage in the strengthening of this strategic partnership.

In the cyber and digital sectors (including artificial intelligence and quantum AI), Luxembourg and Belgium share the ambition to be at the forefront of technology in Europe. Current and future projects under EuroQCI and BENELUX-QCI, as well as potential future collaborations centred on the MeluXina-Q quantum computer, illustrate the emergence of a Belgian-Luxembourg axis capable of contributing directly to the European Union’s strategic and technological autonomy.

• Joint press conference: www.youtube.com/watch
• Joint “Gäichel XIII” Declaration: Luxembourg and Belgium – future-oriented cooperation - gouvernement.lu/fr/actualites/toutes_actualites/communiques/2026/03-mars/23-declaration-gaichel.html