EU

Belgium took over the EU presidency on Monday, but the country’s political focus is already fixated on parliamentary elections on June 9th. Already politically divided Belgium risks becoming even more divided in the elections, with the Flemish right-wing Vlaams Belang party predicted to make significant gains in the polls. The party wants independence for Flanders in the north of Belgium. However, a national election campaign will not stand in the way of Belgium fulfilling its role of President, according to Belgian Foreign and EU Minister Hadja Lahbib in Politico. “Other presidencies before us have had similar circumstances, such as in France – or, more recently, in Spain. That hasn’t stopped them from honouring their presidency,” she says. /ritzau/