The defence ministry plans to build a new East Flemish army base in Ursel (Aalter). Plans to build the new base near Geraardsbergen are no longer under consideration. Plans to close the Koksijde air base in West Flanders have also been scrapped. The defence ministry will even increase housing for military personnel in Koksijde.
The previous government decided to build a new army barracks in Geraardsbergen (East Flanders), but the plans met with local resistance.
‘A project in ‘Aalter/Ursel’ was always the defence ministry's preference but was rejected by the previous government in favour of Geraardsbergen,’ says an officer involved in the dossier. There are claims former prime minister Alexander De Croo (Flemish liberal Open VLD), who hails from a neighbouring municipality, promoted Geraardsbergen for electoral reasons.
In Ursel, the defence ministry already owns a lot of land and it even has a small airport there. The current government is now following the defence ministry’s preferred option: Ursel.
Both the Belgian armed forces’ air component and the land component are showing great interest in the site. ‘Both components are looking for additional space, and it has not yet been decided who will get preference,’ said one person involved.
The land component claims it could use the space and green surroundings at Ursel, especially now that many new armoured vehicles are being delivered. The air component, in turn, points to the unique presence of a runway.
Defence ministry to build, build, build
The defence ministry wants to recruit almost 10,000 extra staff during this parliament and that will require extra space.
Plans to sell the Koksijde air force base have now been completely reversed. The base is being expanded. The army will operate there too, and to attract young soldiers to Koksijde, the defence ministry will also build new housing. Search and Rescue capacity including the NH90 helicopter will remain based at Koksijde.
In the short term, the defence ministry will also invest in new rescue helicopters so that the NH90 helicopters can be fully deployed to the Navy frigates. Plans for a move to Ostend are scrapped.
There are also plans for a new command centre at the Zeebrugge naval base. Plans to build a tower are being changed to an underground command centre due to the current security situation.
In early May, the foundation stone will be laid for a new headquarters for the Belgian armed forces at the Queen Elisabeth Base, in Brussels (Evere). The new headquarters will be on the site of the old NATO HQ, directly opposite the new NATO building.
The new, high-security site including several buildings will accommodate nearly 4,000 staff. The main building itself consists mainly of offices with 2,800 workstations that will house all services of the Defence Staff, the Military Intelligence Service (ADIV) as well as ‘Cyber Command’. The new headquarters will cost 500 million euros.
There will also be at least two new ammunition storage sites. Today, the defence ministry still has one large ammunition depot near the Walloon town of Bertrix. As the ministry wants to expand ammunition stocks once again, space is also needed with more secure storage. The ministry wants to open two new storage sites, one in Flanders, possibly near Zutendaal, where ammunition manufacturer FN Herstal has a factory.