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DE RUEHBS #1579/01 3281359
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FM AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9728
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRUSSELS 001579 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS EUR/WE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL BE
SUBJECT: BELGIUM: KING ASKS FORMER PM MARTENS TO SMOOTH PATH 
TO NEW LETERME GOVERNMENT 
 
BRUSSELS 00001579  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
REFERENCE A: BRUSSELS 1521 B: BRUSSELS 1498 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) After current Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van 
Rompuy was selected on November 19 as the first permanent 
President of the European Council, King Albert asked Minister 
of State and former PM Wilfried Martens to come back from 
retirement to serve as a "mediator" between the five parties 
that make up the current coalition government.  The King hopes 
Martens can smooth the path for the expected return of Yves 
Leterme, who was PM from March through December 2008, to the 
PM's office from his current post of Foreign Minister.  All 
indications are that the Flemish Christian Democrat (CD&V) 
Leterme will be the next Prime Minister.  The King and the 
current government seek the coalition parties' agreement to 
work together through the upcoming Belgian European Union (EU) 
Presidency (July - December 2010).  Martens will also seek an 
agreement between the parties on a proposal for discussing and 
ultimately resolving two long-simmering issues that prevented 
Leterme from forming a government for almost a year after his 
electoral success in June 2007: Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde 
(BHV), which has to do with the rights of the French and 
Dutch-speaking language communities, and devolution, which 
involves determining which responsibilities currently with the 
federal government will next be given to the regions.  End 
Summary. 
 
Martens the Mediator 
-------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) The King tasked former PM and Minister of State 
Wilfried Martens with his mediation mission following the 
November 19 EU Council decision to name Belgium's Flemish 
Christian Democrat (CD&V) Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy EU 
Council President.  Martens (also CD&V) was asked to help 
craft a political agreement on a way forward on the so-called 
"institutional issues," namely BHV and devolution, between the 
governing parties that would help pave the way to an easy 
transition to a new government to be led by fellow CD&V member 
Yves Leterme, currently Foreign Minister and PM immediately 
before Van Rompuy.  Martens met with the party and government 
leaders over the weekend of November 21-22 and submitted a 
draft proposal to the presidents of the majority parties on 
November 23.  He was expected to submit the proposal to the 
King on November 24.  If everything goes according to plan, 
Van Rompuy will officially resign his position and Yves 
Leterme will be sworn in as PM later the week of November 23, 
according to well-placed CD&V sources. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Martens is charged only with finding a working plan 
and process for dealing with BHV, not an actual solution, 
which is sensible, given that the BHV problem has existed 
since 1963.  According to the press, the five coalition 
parties agree that this festering issue should be dealt with 
before Belgium assumes the EU presidency during the second 
half of 2010.  Leterme's first government fell in July 2008 
when he was finally unable to solve BHV by his self-imposed 
July 2008 deadline.  Martens' report to the King is to contain 
results of his discussions between current PM Van Rompuy, FM 
Leterme, the five vice premiers, and the majority party 
presidents.  Though an agreement on BHV during the firins, the Francopho party, it QJuly until December2007, Leterme 
engineered a vote of the Flemish representatives in Parliament 
to split BHV, which was unanimously opposed by all French MPs. 
In December 2007, the King asked the previous PM Guy 
Verhofstadt to lead an interim government until Leterme was 
able to negotiate his own government.  Leterme finally became 
PM in March 2008, but offered his resignation in July 2008 
when the Flemish Nationalist N-VA broke its alliance with the 
CD&V because of its failure to reach a solution acceptable to 
 
BRUSSELS 00001579  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
the N-VA on BHV and devolution.  The King did not accept his 
resignation and the Leterme government carried on until 
December 2008, when allegations in the press of judicial 
interference related to the sale of Belgium's largest bank 
Fortis caused the collapse of his government.  Herman Van 
Rompuy then took over as PM, and Leterme came back as FM in a 
July 2008 Cabinet reshuffle.  That period was the longest 
drawn out political crisis in Belgium's political history, 
which is saying something.  Leterme, PM Van Rompuy, and the 
King, all want assurances that the majority party leaders are 
willing to negotiate on institutional issues in the coming 
months. 
 
¶6. (SBU) While there has been some speculation in the press 
about some shuffling of ministerial positions, CD&V party 
president Marianne Thyssen has already made it clear that the 
party will not give up the foreign affairs portfolio, 
especially given Belgium's upcoming EU presidency.  Vice 
Premier and Public Enterprise Minister Steven Vanackere, who 
has no known foreign policy experience, is the only candidate 
the CD&V has suggested for the post. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) While the coalition  parties have said nothing to 
show that a compromise on BHV is in the offing, neither have 
they made any hard-line statements that would make discussions 
on that long-standing problem a non-starter.  The King, the 
mediator Martens, and the presumed-PM-to be Leterme would all 
like to create as stable a political environment as is 
possible before and during the Belgian EU presidency. 
Therefore, it is very important that government party leaders 
refrain from saying anything that would kill the prospect of a 
negotiated deal, which could immediately throw a new Leterme 
government into another crisis.  Whether the coalition 
partners can maintain that discipline is another question 
altogether. 
 
GUTMAN