'Nog veel onduidelijkheid rond tests Amerikaanse kernwapens' Enkele comments over Trump zijn aankondiging omtrent het testen van kernwapens voor @AskBelgapress @mathiasdemeyer @EgmontInstitute https://t.co/o0jruvpsxb

📄 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞 As global tensions rise, Belgium—home to both the EU and NATO—faces key strategic choices. A new book Reflecting on Belgium’s Strategic Orientations blends first-hand experience with academic analyses to explore the panorama of current challenges and to

"Europe’s populations are readier to fight than they are often credited. The problem isn’t their lack of will, but elite pessimism about it."

I had an amazing conversation with Gerhard Elfers about the nuclear exercises happening today and whether they constitute an actual threat of war, or a series of choreographed signals between two sides well-versed in deterrence. Thanks to ⁦@dwnews⁩

Timely reflection on Belgian defense and foreign policy. I am glad that I have been able to contribute to this debate with a chapter titled 'The Future of Belgian Defense: From Standalone Forces to Niche-Based Forces and Back?'

Provided some comments on the F-35 and FCAS for @Parlimag @pedersschaefer “If you compare it with the capabilities of a Eurofighter or a Rafale, the F-35 is a whole other beast.” https://t.co/bVbS7zlcdj @EgmontInstitute

The next generation of dual-capable airpower has arrived!🇧🇪

NATO’s annual nuclear deterrence exercise – STEADFAST NOON – will start on 13 October. The exercise is an important demonstration of the Alliance’s nuclear deterrent, and sends a clear message to any adversary that NATO can and will protect and defend all Allies 🛡️

📄 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗣𝗨𝗕𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 🧵1/5 NATO’s nuclear posture is under pressure. In @AetherJournal, @W_Verstraete @EgmontInstitute argues that adapting NATO’s forward-deployed nuclear forces is essential to maintain credibility in the face of Russian threats. ⬇️ 🔗

Gepaste reactie en duidelijk signaal alvast van de NAVO, namelijk het direct neerhalen van iedere drone die aanwezig was in het Poolse (NAVO) luchtruim.

Doelbewuste provocatie/ test of 'verdwaalde' drones? Wit-Rusland lijkt alvast te willen de-escaleren. Niettemin zullen de zenuwen -terecht- gespannen staan de komende dagen. Rusland en Wit-Rusland starten namelijk vrijdag met de militaire oefening Zapad 2025 (vertaling: Westen)

Voor diegene die denken dat grotere drones zoals de MQ-9B niet meer nuttig zijn: https://t.co/wHb8XnkxQr

Deze lekken moeten stoppen. Transparantie is in een democratie belangrijk, maar sommige discussies kunnen omwille van veiligheidsredenen enkel achter gesloten deuren plaatsvinden. Journalisten en commentatoren dragen hier trouwens ook een maatschappelijke verantwoordelijkheid.

Deuxièmement, dans un article sur le réarmement européen : L'Europe se réarme, mais en ordre dispersé https://t.co/xtAlwicqNq @EgmontInstitute

Quelques commentaires pour @lecho Premièrement, dans un article sur la nouvelle vision stratégique de la défense belge : Forces et faiblesses du "plan Francken" pour la défense belge https://t.co/tTQsKJge5q

After the NATO Summit in The Hague, the Belgian Ministry of Defence published its new Strategic Vision in July. You can read a review of the Defence plan for the next 10 years, including its strengths and weaknesses, in my latest policy brief for @EgmontInstitute

⏭️ Next week @EgmontInstitute new publication by @W_Verstraete Fit for the Future? A Review of the Belgian Defence’s 2025 Strategic Vision

"Great power politics is not a dinner party, where one gets invited because of one’s witty conversation. Those who count are invited to a summit because they are indispensable to produce an outcome and make it work. Let us make ourselves indispensable then." #SvenBiscop

Link to the article:

Pleased to share my latest article 'Adapting the Hardware of NATO’s Forward-Deployed Nuclear Forces', which has been published @AetherJournal In the article, I discuss various air, sea and land-based nuclear and non-nuclear options that could strengthen NATO's nuclear posture.