Belgique

Declaration made at the time of ratificiation

Pursuant to articles 10 (1) and 70 of the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction, adopted in New York on 19 June 2023, the Kingdom of Belgium makes the following exception upon depositing its instrument of ratification: In exercising the option to make an exception set out in the second sentence of article 10, paragraph 1 of the Agreement, the Kingdom of Belgium wishes to exclude from the scope of application of the provisions of Part II of the Agreement the utilization of marine genetic resources and digital sequence information on marine genetic resources of areas beyond national jurisdiction collected or generated before entry into force.

Declaration made upon signature:

“This signature engages also the Walloon Region, the Flemish Region and the Brussels-Capital Region.”

Declaration made upon signature:

This signature also engages the Wallon Region, the Flemish Region, the Brussels-CapitalRegion, the French Community, the Flemish Community and the German-speaking Community.

Upon Signature

Declaration:
“This signature engages also the French Community, the Flemish Community, the German-speaking Community, the Walloon Region, the Flemish Region and the Brussels-Capital Region.”
Upon Ratification

Declaration:
The Kingdom of Belgium recognizes the competence of the Committee on the Rights of the Child to receive, pursuant to article 12 of the Optional Protocol, communications from a State party which claims that another State is not fulfilling its obligations.

Upon signature

“This signature engages also the French Community, the Flemish Community, the German-speaking Community, the Walloon Region, the Flemish Region and the Brussels-Capital Region.”

Upon signature

"This signature engages also the Walloon Region, the Flemish Region and the Brussels-Capital Region."

Declaration:

The Kingdom of Belgium declares that only nuclear materials and facilities containing nuclear materials are covered by article 18, paragraph 1(b) and (c).

Reservation:
The Belgian Government entered the following reservation concerning the implementation of article 29 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption, done in New York on 31 October 2003 at the time of the deposit of its instrument of ratification, the
text of which reads as follows:
“In accordance with articles 21 and 22 of the preliminary part of the Belgian Code of Criminal Procedure, the fact that an alleged perpetrator of an offence established in accordance with this Convention has evaded the administration of justice shall not extend or
suspend the statute of limitations period in which to commence proceedings.”

Upon signature:

Declaration:

This signature engages also the Waloon region, the Flemish region, and the Brussels-Capital region.

Declaration made upon signature:

This signature also engages the French community, Flemish community and German-speaking community, the Waloon region, the Flemish region and the Brussels-capital region.
Declaration made upon ratification:

The Kingdom of Belgium declares that, for a dispute not resolved in accordance with paragraph 1 of Article 27 of the Convention, it accepts, as compulsory, ad hoc arbitration in accordance with procedures to be adopted by consensus by the Conference of the Parties.

Reservation:

The Government of Belgium makes the following reservation concerning article 4, paragraph 2 of the Additional Protocol: the activities of armed forces during a period of armed conflict, in the sense given these terms under international humanitarian law, which are governed by this law, are not governed by the present Protocol.

Declaration made upon signature:

“This signature engages also the Waloon region, the Flemish region, and the Brussels-Capital region.”

Upon signature:

Declaration:
The French, Flemish and German-speaking Communities and the Regions of Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels-Capital are also bound by this signature.

Upon signature:

Declaration:
The French, Flemish and German-speaking Communities and the Regions of Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels-Capital are also bound by this signature.

Upon signature:

Declaration:
The French, Flemish and German-speaking Communities and the Regions of Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels-Capital are also bound by this signature.

Declaration:

In accordance with the revised Convention on the Navigation of the Rhine (and of article 14, paragraph 3 (b), of the Agreement ADN, the competencies of the State Parties to this Convention in respect of regulations concerning the transport of the dangerous goods on the Rhine are exercised jointly in the framework of the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine. Therefore, the provisions of the Agreement ADN and its annexes as well as their amendments must be implemented in the Rhine regulations by the Central Commission in accordance with the above-mentioned Convention.The Member State of the Central Commission undertakes, in this context, to assist in taking the necessary measures for the implementation of this agreement on the Rhine.

Upon signature:

Declaration:

This signature is equally binding on the French community, the Flemish community and the German-speaking community.
Upon ratification:

Declaration:

The expression 'child pornography' is understood to mean the visual representation of a child participating in real or simulated sexual activities or the visual representation of the sexual parts of a child, when the dominant characteristic is a description for sexual purposes.

Declarations:

1.In accordance with article 3, paragraph 2, and bearing in mind article 3, paragraph 5, the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium states that the minimum age for voluntary recruitment into the Belgian armed forces is not lower than 18 years.
2. The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium states that it is absolutely forbidden under Belgian law for any person under the age of 18 years to participate in times of war and in times of peace in any peacekeeping operation or in any kind of armed operational engagement. Moreover, non-governmental militias are prohibited, regardless of the age of the persons concerned.
3. The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium shall not act upon a request for judicial cooperation where doing so would lead to discrimination between governmental and non-governmental forces in violation of the principle of international humanitarian law of equality of parties to a conflict, including in the event of armed conflict of a non-international nature.

Declaration :

I. Concerning article 2, paragraph 2 (a), of the Convention, the Government of Belgium declares the following:
The following treaties are to be deemed not to be included in the annex:
Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons, including Diplomatic Agents, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 14 December 1973;
Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation (Rome, 10 March 1988);
Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Fixed Platforms Located on the Continental Shelf (Rome, 10 March 1988);
International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 15 December 1997.
II. The Government of Belgium interprets paragraphs 1 and 3 of article 2 as follows: an offence in the sense of the Convention is committed by any person who provides or collects funds if by doing so he contributes, fully or partly, to the planning, preparation or commission of an offence as defined in article 2, paragraph 1 (a) and (b) of the Convention. There is no requirement to prove that the funds provided or collected have been used precisely for a particular terrorist act, provided that they have contributed to the criminal activities of persons whose goal was to commit the acts set forth in article 2, paragraph 1 (a) and (b).
[.....]

Upon signature:

Declaration:

The French, Flemish and German-speaking Communities and the Regions of Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels-Capital are also bound by this singature.

Declaration:

The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium recalls that as a Member of the European Community, it has transferred competence to the Community in respect of certain matters governed by the Agreement.
The Kingdom of Belgium hereby confirms the declarations made by the European Community upon ratification of the Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 198[2] relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks.
[See declarations under “European Community”.]

Interpretative declaration:

The Belgian Government declares the following: article 9, paragraph 1 (c), only covers cases where the threat is credible.

Upon signature:

Declaration:

This signature also commits the Flemish region, the Wallone region and the region of the capital Brussels.

Declaration made upon signature and confirmed upon ratification:

As a Member State of the European Community, the Government of Belgium will implement the provisions of the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, in accordance with its obligations arising from the rules of the Treaties establishing the European Communities to the extent that such rules are applicable.

Upon signature:

Belgium undertakes to reduce its national annual emissions of VOCs by at least 30 per cent by the year 1999, using 1988 levels as a basis (article 2, paragraph 2 ( a )).

Reservations:

No provision of the present Convention should be interpreted as implying an obligation of mutual judicial assistance if the requested State party has reason to believe that the request for judicial assistance concerning certain offences has been submitted for the purposes of prosecuting or punishing a certain person on the grounds of ethnic origin, religion, nationality or political views, or if acceding to the request would prejudice the situation of that person on any of those grounds.
No provision of the present Convention should be interpreted as implying an obligation of extradition if the requested State party has reason to believe that the request for extradition based on the offences set forth in the Convention has been submitted for the purposes of prosecuting or punishing a certain person on the grounds of ethnic origin, religion, nationality or political views , or if acceding to the request would prejudice the situation of that person on any of those grounds.
No provision of the Convention should be interpreted as implying, for Belgium, an obligation to extradite Belgian nationals.

Interpretative declarations:

1. With regard to article 2, paragraph 1, according to the interpretation of the Belgian Government non-discrimination on grounds of national origin does not necessarily imply the obligation for States automatically to guarantee foreigners the same rights as their nationals. This concept should be understood as designed to rule out all arbitrary conduct but not differences in treatment based on objective and reasonable considerations, in accordance with the principles prevailing in democratic societies.
2. Articles 13 and 15 shall be applied by the Belgian Government within the context of the provisions and limitations set forth or authorized by said Convention in articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 4 November 1950.
3. The Belgian Government declares that it interprets article 14, paragraph 1, as meaning that, in accordance with the relevant provisions of article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 19 December 1966 and article 9 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 4 November 1950, the right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience and religion implies also the freedom to choose his or her religion or belief.
4. With regard to article 40, paragraph 2 (b) (v), the Belgian Government considers that the expression "according to law" at the end of that provision means that:
(a) This provision shall not apply to minors who, under Belgian law, are declared guilty and are sentenced in a higher court following an appeal against their acquittal in a court of the first instance;
(b) This provision shall not apply to minors who, under Belgian law, are referred directly to a higher court such as the Court of Assize.

21 June 1993

Reservation:

The Belgian State will not be bound by articles 53 and 64 of the Convention with regard to any party which, in formulating a reservation concerning article 66 (2), objects to the settlement procedure established by this article.

Upon signature:

The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium has decided to sign the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea because the Convention has a very large number of positive features and achieves a compromise on them which is acceptable to most States. Nevertheless, with regard to the status of maritime space, it regrets that the concept of equity, adopted for the delimitation of the continental shelf and the exclusive economic zone, was not applied again in the provisions for delimiting the territorial sea. It welcomes, however, the distinctions established by the Convention between the nature of the rights which riparian States exercise over their territorial sea, on the one hand, and over the continental shelf and their exclusive economic zone, on the other.
It is common knowledge that the Belgian Government cannot declare itself also satisfied with certain provisions of the international régime of the sea-bed which, though based on a principle that it would not think of challenging, seems not to have chosen the most suitable way of achieving the desired result as quickly and surely as possible, at the risk of jeopardizing the success of a generous undertaking which Belgium consistently encourages and supports. Indeed, certain provisions of Part XI and of Annexes III and IV appear to it to be marred by serious defects and shortcomings which explain why consensus was not reached on this text at the last session of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, in New York, in April 1982. These shortcomings and defects concern in particular the restriction of access to the Area, the limitations on production and certain procedures for the transfer of technology, not to mention the vexatious implications of the cost and financing of the future International Sea-Bed Authority and the first mine site of the Enterprise. The Belgian Government sincerely hopes that these shortcomings and defects will in fact be rectified b the rules, regulations and procedures which the Preparatory Commission should draw up with the twofold intent of facilitating acceptance of the new régime by the whole international community and enabling the common heritage of mankind to be properly exploited for the benefit of all and, preferably, for the benefit of the least favoured countries. The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium is not alone in thinking that the success of this new régime, the effective establishment of the International Sea-Bed Authority and the economic viability of the Enterprise will depend to a large extent on the quality and seriousness of the Preparatory Commission's work: it therefore considers that all decisions of the Commission should be adopted by consensus, that being the only way of protecting the legitimate interests of all.
As the representatives of France and the Netherlands pointed out two years ago, the Belgian Government wishes to make it abundantly clear that, notwithstanding its decision to sign the Convention today, the Kingdom of Belgium is not here and now determined to ratify it. It will take a separate decision on this point at a later date, which will take account of what the Preparatory Commission has accomplished to make the international régime of the sea-bed acceptable to all, focusing mainly on the questions to which attention has been drawn above.
The Belgian Government also wishes to recall that Belgium is a member of the European Economic Community, to which it has transferred powers in certain areas covered by the Convention; detailed declarations on the nature and extent of the powers transferred will be made in due course, in accordance with the provisions of Annex IX of the Convention.
It also wishes to draw attention formally to several points which it considers particularly crucial. For example, it attaches great importance to the conditions to which Articles 21 and 23 of the Convention subject the right of innocent passage through the territal sea, and it intends to ensure that the criteria prescribed by the relevant international agreements are strictly applied, whether the flag States are parties thereto or not. The limitation of the breadth of the territorial sea, as established by Article 3 of the Convention, confirms and codifies a widely observed customary practice which it is incumbent on every State to respect, as it is the only one admitted by international law: the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium will not therefore recognize, as territorial sea, waters which are, or may be, claimed to be such beyond 12 nautical miles measured from baselines determined by the riparian State in accordance with the Convention. Having underlined the close linkage which it perceives between Article 33, paragraph 1 (a), and Article 27, paragraph 2, of the Convention, the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium intends to reserve the right, in emergencies and especially in cases of blatant violation, to exercise the powers accorded to the riparian State by the latter text, without notifying beforehand a diplomatic agent or consular officer of the flag State, on the understanding that such notification shall be given as soon as it is physically possible. Finally, everyone will understand that the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium chooses to emphasize those provisions of the Convention which entitle it to protect itself, beyond the limit of the territorial sea, against any threat of pollution and, a fortiori , against any existing pollution resulting from an accident at sea, as well as those provisions which recognize the validity of rights and obligations deriving from specific conventions and agreements concluded previously or which may be concluded subsequently in furtherance of the general principles set forth in the Convention.
In the absence of any other peaceful means to which it obviously gives priority, the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium deems it expedient to choose alternatively, and in order of preference, as Article 287 of the Convention leaves it free to do, the following means of settling disputes concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention:
1. an arbitral tribunal constituted in accordance with Annex VIII;
2. the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea established in accordance with Annex VI;
3. the International Court of Justice.
Still in the absence of any other peaceful means, the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium wishes here and now to recognize the validity of the special arbitration procedure for any dispute concerning the interpretation or application of the provisions of the Convention in respect of fisheries, protection and preservation of the marine environment, marine scientific research or navigation, including pollution from vessels and by dumping.
For the time being, the Belgian Government does not wish to make any declaration in accordance with Article 298, confining itself to the one made above in accordance with Article 287. Finally, the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium does not consider itself bound by any of the declarations which other States have made, or may make, upon signing or ratifying the Convention, reserving the right, as necessary, to determine its position with regard to each of them at the appropriate time.
Upon ratification:

Declaration:

The Kingdom of Belgium Notes that , as a State member of the European Community, it has transferred competence to the Community for some matters provided for in the Convention, which are listed in the declaration made by the European Community upon formal confirmation of the Convention by the European Community on 1st April 1998.
In accordance with article 287 of the Convention, the Kingdom of Belgium hereby declares that it chooses, as a means for the settlement of disputes concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention, in view of its preference for pre-established jurisdictions, either the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea established in accordance with Annex VI (art. 287.1 (a)) or the International Court of Justice (art. 287.1(b)), in the absence of any other means of peaceful settlement of disputes that it might prefer.

Upon signature:

Declaration:

In accordance with the provisions of paragraph 16 (a) of the said Protocol, the Government of Belgium made a declaration according to the terms of which it shall not be bound by Part II, Part IV, Annex C.1, Annex F, Annex G and Annex H of the said Protocol, and within the framework of the European Economic Community, it will examine the possibility of accepting Annex C.1 in the light of the position adopted by other Contracting Parties with regard to that Annex.

With a reservation concerning the following articles:

1. Article 5 amending article 12 (5) of the Single Convention;
2. Article 9 amending article 29 (1), (2) and (5) of the Single Convention.

Transport operations between member States of the European Economic Community shall be regarded as national transport operations within the meaning of the AETR in so far as such operations do not pass in transit through the territory of a third State which is a contracting party to the AETR.

21 June 1993

Reservation:

The Belgian State will not be bound by articles 53 and 64 of the Convention with regard to any party which, in formulating a reservation concerning article 66 (a), objects to the settlement procedure established by this article.

16 May 1989
Reservations to articles 10 (6) and 23 (7), and annex 5, section F, 6.

16 May 1989

Reservations to article 10 (3) and 18 (3).

Reservations:

...
2. The Belgian Government considers that the provision of article 10, paragraph 2 (a), under which accused persons shall, save in exceptional circumstances, be segregated from convicted persons is to be interpreted in conformity with the principle, already embodied in the standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners [resolution (73) 5 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe of 19 January 1973], that untried prisoners shall not be put in contact with convicted prisoners against their will [rules 7 (b) and 85 (1)]. If they so request, accused persons may be allowed to take part with convicted persons in certain communal activities.
3. The Belgian Government considers that the provisions of article 10, paragraph 3, under which juvenile offenders shall be segregated from adults and be accorded treatment appropriate to their age and legal status refers exclusively to the judicial measures provided for under the régime for the protection of minors established by the Belgian Act relating to the protection of young persons. As regards other juvenile ordinary-law of- fenders, the Belgian Government intends to reserve the option to adopt measures that may be more flexible and be designed precisely in the interest of the persons concerned.
4. With respect to article 14, the Belgian Government considers that the last part of paragraph 1 of the article appears to give States the option of providing or not providing for certain derogations from the principle that judgements shall be made public. Accordingly, the Belgian constitutional principle that there shall be no exceptions to the public pronouncements of judgements is in conformity with that provision. Paragraph 5 of the article shall not apply to persons who, under Belgian law, are convicted and sentenced at second instance following an appeal against their acquittal of first instance or who, under Belgian law, are brought directly before a higher tribunal sch as the Court of Cassation, the Appeals Court or the Assize Court.
5. Articles 19, 21 and 22 shall be applied by the Belgian Government in the context of the provisions and restrictions set forth or authorized in articles 10 and 11 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 4 November 1950, by the said Convention.
Declarations:

6. The Belgian Government declares that it does not consider itself obligated to enact legislation in the field covered by article 20, paragraph 1, and that article 20 as a whole shall be applied taking into account the rights to freedom of thought and religion, freedom of opinion and freedom of assembly and association proclaimed in articles 18, 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and reaffirmed in articles 18, 19, 21 and 22 of the Covenant.
7. The Belgian Government declares that it interprets article 23, paragraph 2, as meaning that the right of persons of marriageable age to marry and to found a family presupposes not only that national law shall prescribe the marriageable age but that it may also regulate the exercise of that right.

Interpretative declarations:

1. With respect to article 2, paragraph 2, the Belgian Government interprets non-discrimination as to national origin as not necessarily implying an obligation on States automatically to guarantee to foreigners the same rights as to their nationals. The term should be understood to refer to the elimination of any arbitrary behaviour but not of differences in treatment based on objective and reasonable considerations, in conformity with the principles prevailing in democratic societies.
2. With respect to article 2, paragraph 3, the Belgian Government understands that this provision cannot infringe the principle of fair compensation in the event of expropriation or nationalization.

In order to meet the requirements of article 4 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Kingdom of Belgium will take care to adapt its legislation to the obligations it has assumed in becoming a party to the said Convention.
The Kingdom of Belgium nevertheless wishes to emphasize the importance which it attaches to the fact that article 4 of the Convention provides that the measures laid down in subparagraphs (a), (b), and (c) should be adopted with due regard to the principles embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the rights expressly set forth in article 5 of the Convention. The Kingdom of Belgium therefore considers that the obligations imposed by article 4 must be reconciled with the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association. Those rights are proclaimed in articles 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and have been reaffirmed in articles 19 and 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. They have also been stated in article 5, subparagraph (d) (viii) and (ix) of the said Convention.
The Kingdom of Belgium also wishes to emphasize the importance which it attaches to respect for the rights set forth in the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, especially in articles 10 and 11 dealing respectively with freedom of opinion and expression and freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

Declaration made upon signature and confirmed upon ratifica- tion:

1. With regard to the application of article 3 of the Conven- tion, the Belgian Government considers that the exemption relates exclusively to duties or taxes on imports or exports, and not to taxes on transactions, such as the Belgian tax on transport and auxiliary services, which also apply to internal trade.
2. Belgium can apply article 4, paragraph 1, only in so far as State-owned means of transport and handling equipment are concerned.
Upon signature (the reservation referred to below was not made upon ratification):

3. The Belgian Government intends, upon depositing its instrument of ratification of the Convention, to make a reserva- tion concerning the rights and obligations of Belgium arising from its adherence to certain international treaties relating to economic matters or trade.

Declarations:

1. Pursuant to article 5, paragraph 3, of the Rome Convention, Belgium will not apply the criterion of publication;
2. Pursuant to article 6, paragraph 2, of the Rome Convention, Belgium will protect broadcasts only if the headquarters of the broadcasting organization is situated in another Contracting State and the broadcast was transmitted from a transmitter situated in the same Contracting State;
3. Pursuant to article 16, paragraph 1 (a) (iii), of the Rome Convention, Belgium will not apply the provisions of article 12 in respect of phonograms the producer of which is not a national of a Contracting State;
4. Pursuant to article 16, paragraph 1 (a) (iv), of the Rome Convention, as regards phonograms the producer of which is a national of another Contracting State, Belgium will limit the protection provided for by that article to the extent to which, and to the term for which, the latter State grants protection to phonograms first fixed by a national of the State making the declaration; however, the fact that the Contracting State of which the producer is a national does not grant the protection to the same beneficiary or beneficiaries as the State making the declaration shall not be considered as a difference in the extent of the protection.

Declaration:

- Declaration concerning article 2 of the Convention:
The Belgian Government declares that, for Belgium, the category of “foundlings” concerns found children who are believed to be newborn.
- Declaration concerning article 8, paragraph 3 of the Convention:
Belgium reserves the right to deprive of his nationality a person who did not acquire it by virtue of a Belgian individual on the day of his birth, or who was not granted it under the Belgian Nationality Code, in the cases currently provided for under Belgian legislation, namely:
1. If the person acquired Belgian nationality through fraudulent conduct, provision of false information, forgery and/or the use of false or falsified documents, identity fraud or fraudulent acquisition of the right of residency;
2. If he seriously violates his duties as a Belgian citizen;
3. If he has been sentenced as perpetrator, co-perpetrator or accomplice, to a non-suspended prison sentence of at least five years for one of the following offences:
- Attacks or plots against the King, the Royal Family or the Government;
- Crimes or misdemeanours against the external security of the State;
- Crimes or misdemeanours against the internal security of the State;
- Serious violations of international humanitarian law;
- Terrorist offences;
- Threat of attack against persons or property, and false information regarding serious attacks;
- Theft or extortion of nuclear materials;
- Offences relating to the physical protection of nuclear materials;
- Human trafficking;
- People smuggling;
4. If he has been sentenced as perpetrator, co-perpetrator or accomplice, to a non-suspended prison sentence of at least five years for an offence that was manifestly facilitated by the possession of Belgian nationality, provided that the offence was committed within five years of the acquisition of Belgian nationality.

In accordance with article II, paragraph 2, of the Convention, the Belgian Government declares that in Belgium only the State has, in the cases referred to in article I, paragraph 1, the faculty to conclude arbitration agreements.

In accordance with article I, paragraph 3, the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium declares that it will apply the Conven- tion to the recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards made only in the territory of a Contracting State.

(a) In accordance with article 1, paragraph 6, Belgium declares that it does not consider itself bound by any of the Regulations annexed to the Agreement;
(b) In accordance with article 11, paragraph 1, Belgium declares that it does not consider itself bound by article 10 of the Agreement.

does not consider itself bound by article 14 of the Agreement.

1. In all cases where the Convention grants to refugees the most favourable treatment accorded to nationals of a foreign country, this provision shall not be interpreted by the Belgian Government as necessarily involving the régime accorded to nationals of countries with which Belgium has concluded regional customs, economic or political agreements.
2. Article 15 of the Convention shall not be applicable in Belgium; refugees lawfully staying in Belgian territory will enjoy the same treatment, as regards the right of association, as that accorded to aliens in general.

Upon signature

Declaration:

The Flemish, French and German-speaking Communities of Belgium are equally bound by this signature.

In accordance with article 11, paragraph 3, of the Agreement, the payment of the Paid-in Shares subscribed by Belgium (2,640,699 Units of Account) will be effected in three instalments in accordance with the specified procedure, the first of which will take place within 60 days after the entry into force of the Agreement.
With regard to the amount subscribed by Belgium for Payable Shares (915,543 Units of Account), it shall be subject to call by the Fund, in accordance with article 11, paragraph 4, only as provided in article 17, paragraph 12.

7 June 2013

Declaration:
“This signature engages also the Walloon Region, the Flemish Region and the Brussels-Capital Region.”

Declaration made upon signature:

This signature engages also the Waloon region, the Flemish region, and the Brussels-Capital region.

Declaration made upon signature: This signature also engages the French community, the Flemish community, the German-speaking community and the Waloon region.

enters the reservations provided for in article 21, paragraph 1 (b), (c) and (d).

[The Government of Belgium] considers the French text as authentic, in accordance with article 19 of the Convention.