This week, everything will be locked down in Rijkhoven, a borough of the Flemish municipality of Bilzen-Hoeselt in Limburg Province. The village, with a population of just 1,400, will temporarily become the setting for a European summit where Macron, Von der Leyen and other heads of state and government are expected on Thursday.
‘We were contacted back in the summer to ask if we would be willing to host the European summit on our territory,’ says Bruno Steegen, mayor of Bilzen-Hoestelt. This Thursday, an informal EU summit will take place at the Alden Biesen landcommandery , an historic estate. The news website Politico refers to it as the ‘Belgian countryside’.
The mayor says that a lot of security measures have been taken: ‘Fences are being erected in and around the estate’. This involves hundreds of metres of steel. ‘In addition to the EU, the federal government, the province of Limburg and even the Belgian army are also helping.’
History repeats itself
It is as if history is repeating itself, the old estate of the Teutonic Order is once again being hermetically sealed off.
A closed perimeter will indeed be established in and around the Alden Biesen castle grounds. It will be in effect on Thursday between 6 a.m. and midnight. No traffic will be allowed in this zone, not even cyclists or pedestrians, and parking will be prohibited. Only residents with a special pass and essential services, such as home nurses, will be allowed to enter the zone. Meal delivery drivers, plumbers and locksmiths will also need to have a special pass if they want to pass through the cordon. Residents will have to show their identity card.
The traffic disruption was already noticeable yesterday. Preparations are in full swing in and around the castle.
Exact figures on the number of police and security service personnel are not being released. Bilzen-Hoeselt itself is deploying around 25 of its own employees. The entire police and fire brigade has been called up. The fire station just outside the perimeter is serving as a command centre.
According to European Council officials, some 600 people from the European security and support services will be travelling to Alden Biesen.
Why Alden Biesen?
According to Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever's spokesperson, a conscious decision was made to choose a quiet, historic location where government leaders could consult in complete discretion. Alden Biesen is a medieval site that later served as the headquarters of the Teutonic Order in the region. A touch of German Gründlichkeit that the Prime Minister can appreciate, as he revealed at a press conference in October last year.
‘The beautiful Landcommandery Alden Biesen, was originally founded by a German order. And I think a little German order in Europe is exactly what we need. I couldn't be happier.’
All European heads of government and some heads of state are expected to attend the summit, including French President Macron, German Chancellor Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Influential figures such as former ECB President Mario Draghi and former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta will also be there.