Philippe Goffin (born 1 April 1967) is a Belgian politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Defence from 30 November 2019 to 1 October 2020.[2]

Philippe Goffin
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Minister of Defence
In office
30 November 2019 – 1 October 2020
Prime MinisterSophie Wilmès
Preceded byDidier Reynders
Succeeded bySophie Wilmès (Foreign Affairs)
Ludivine Dedonder (Defense)
Personal details
Born (1967-04-01) 1 April 1967 (age 57)[1]
Rocourt, Belgium
Political partyReformist Movement
Alma materUniversité catholique de Louvain

Political career

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In the federal elections of 26 May 2019, he ran in Liège Province, in 3rd place on the Reformist Movement (MR) list led by Daniel Bacquelaine. He was re-elected to the House with 14,717 votes.[3] On 12 November 2019, following the departure of Charles Michel from the presidency of the MR, he stood in the internal elections of the party but failed in the first round.[4]

On 30 November 2019, he entered the federal government as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Defence, replacing Didier Reynders, who became a member of the European Commission headed by Ursula von der Leyen, holding the Justice portfolio.[2]

In August 2020, Goffin said he welcomed the Israel–United Arab Emirates normalization agreement as a step toward a peaceful Middle East and added that the suspension of the proposed Israeli annexation of the West Bank must be followed up with the two-state solution.[5]

References

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  1. ^ "Philippe Goffin" (in Dutch). De Kamer.
  2. ^ a b "Philippe Goffin succède à Didier Reynders aux Affaires étrangères et à la Défense" (in French). RTBF.be. 30 November 2019.
  3. ^ "Votes nominatifs". elections2019.belgium.be (in French). 24 June 2019.
  4. ^ "Présidence du MR: Philippe Goffin soutiendra Georges-Louis Bouchez au deuxième tour" (in French). RTBF.be. 12 November 2019.
  5. ^ "Belgium welcomes normalisation of relations between UAE, Israel". Emirati News Agency. 14 August 2020.
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