"We did not want this war and will not participate in it." Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever's statement, repeated now for the third time since the conflict began, has become the clearest articulation of European resistance to the Iran campaign [1].

Belgium has declared it will not provide military support to the U.S. or Israel for offensive operations against Iran. Defense Minister Theo Francken has described the U.S.-Israeli strikes as "legally problematic" while acknowledging that the underlying cause — preventing Iranian nuclear capability — is "righteous" [2]. The distinction allows Belgium to offer non-combat support, such as intelligence sharing and defensive missile operations, without direct participation in strikes.

The position is domestically popular. Polling shows approximately 70 percent of Belgians oppose military involvement. De Wever, leading a coalition government that includes both pro-NATO and pacifist elements, has found the refusal to be rare unifying ground in Belgian politics [3].

The stance aligns Belgium with Spain, which has gone further by closing airspace and bases, and with Germany, which has also ruled out combat participation. Together, these positions form an emerging European consensus that the war is America's to fight and finish.

Washington has not publicly criticized Belgium with the same sharpness directed at Spain, but the implicit warning is clear: allies who do not contribute may find their interests deprioritized when the post-war landscape takes shape.

-- HENDRIK VAN DER BERG, Brussels