On Wednesday, Grand Duke Henri and Foreign Affairs Minister Xavier Bettel delivered speeches during a meeting of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. Minister Bettel spoke in French, English, German, and even a little bit of Italian, covering a range of geopolitical issues including developments in Turkey, the Balkans, and Ukraine.
The impact of US policy shifts under President Donald Trump dominated much of Bettel’s remarks. On trade, he emphasised cooperation over individual retaliation measures, urging diplomacy in response to US tariff changes.
As Minister for Foreign Trade, he also highlighted opportunities for Europe, calling for global strategic thinking, harmonisation of defence industries, and reforms to competition rules. Bettel cited the blocked merger between ArcelorMittal and ILVA as an example of flawed policy. The deal’s rejection allowed Liberty Steel to intervene – a move that later left the company near bankruptcy, while the original merger never materialised, Bettel pointed out.
Read also: OGBL declares steelworkers’ situation ‘untenable’ amid bankruptcy delaysLuxembourg has held the presidency of the Committee of Ministers since November 2024 and will continue in this role for several more weeks. It should be noted that the Council of Europe is distinct from the EU, as the two are often confused. It is an international organisation comprising 46 member states, focused on promoting human rights, democracy, and the rule of law across the continent.
On Ukraine, Minister Bettel affirmed Luxembourg’s support for establishing a special court to prosecute war crimes. When questioned about using frozen Russian assets for Ukrainian reparations, Bettel cautioned that legal complexities must be considered.
“We must ask who would be liable to repay these funds when the war ends and Russian citizens potentially regain rights to their assets”, he stated. The minister warned that asset seizures based purely on political decisions could send “a toxic message” to investors, emphasising that any action must be “lawful and watertight”.
Regarding Turkey, Bettel expressed concern over the arrest of opposition leader Ekrem İmamoğlu ahead of elections. “As an external observer, I struggle to understand why a leading candidate would be imprisoned without a court ruling shortly before elections”, he remarked, adding he hoped this did not signal growing authoritarianism.
Read also: Turkey opposition to fight Erdogan ‘until the end': leader tells AFPThe situation in the Balkans also featured prominently in discussions, with Bettel describing the region as increasingly volatile. He warned that tensions are not just running high in Kosovo and Serbia, but that Bosnia also remains “a powder keg”.
Read also: Seven Luxembourg soldiers depart for NATO Kosovo missionRead also: UN urged to probe sonic weapon allegedly used on Serbian protesters
A slightly awkward moment occurred when the minister was asked how the Council of Europe should respond to the executions of Christian minorities in Syria. Bettel stated that what happened over the last weeks in Syria is not only affecting Catholics, but also Alawites. It was then pointed out to the minister that the question was about Christians.
Bettel apologised and quipped that he should have known that since he studied canon law in Greece.
In the afternoon, Grand Duke Henri delivered his own – much shorter – address to the Council of Europe, without taking questions from parliamentarians.
The Luxembourg head of state also painted a sobering picture of current global affairs, describing the return of war to European soil as “without a doubt the worst test” facing the continent. He defended the Council’s decision to exclude Russia, noting all attempts at appeasement had failed.
The Grand Duke stressed that the climate crisis must not be neglected. He regretted that “immediate concerns”, from economic anxieties to the “noise of war”, risk distracting us from the issue, despite the fact that viable solutions exist.
Concluding his remarks, the monarch urged parliamentarians to uphold the postwar legacy of international institutions like the UN, EU, and Council of Europe by continuing their fight for peace, social progress, and human rights. These fundamental principles, he stressed, must remain embedded in collective consciousness. “Together”, the Grand Duke affirmed, “all obstacles can be overcome.”
Click here to watch Xavier Bettel’s full speech, starting at 02:07:00.
