POLITICS
- Conventional Long Form Name of country: Kingdom of Belgium
- Capital City: Brussels
- Type of Government: federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy
- Date of Independence: 4 October 1830
- National Holiday(s): 21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King LEOPOLD I
Chief of State: King Philippe
- Description of Executive Branch/Powers: King, Head of Government, Council of Ministers formally appointed by monarch
- Description of Legislative Branch/Powers: bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or Senaat in Dutch, Senat in French (71 seats; 40 members directly elected by popular vote, 31 indirectly elected; members serve four-year terms) and a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch, Chambre des Representants in French (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
- Description of Judicial Branch/Powers: Constitutional Court or Grondwettelijk Hof in Dutch and Cour constitutionelle in French, Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie in Dutch and Cour de Cassation in French, Courts of Appeal, regional courts, specialized courts for administrative, commercial, labor, and audit issue, magistrate's courts, justices of the peace
- Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
- Belgium Ambassador to the US: Ambassador Jan Matthysen
- Belgium embassy in the US: 3330 Garfield Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
- Belgium consulate(s) in the US: Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York
- US Ambassador to Belgium: Denise Bauer
- US embassy in Belgium: 27 Boulevard du Regent [Regentlaan], B-1000 Brussels
- US consulate(s) in Belgium: N/A
- Belgium representative to UN: Benedicte Frankinet
three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), yellow, and red; the vertical design was based on the flag of France; the colors are those of the arms of the duchy of Brabant (yellow lion with red claws and tongue on a black field)
- National Symbol(s): Lion
- Descriptions of International Disputes: Illicit Drugs
- Quantity of refugees inside country and country(ies) of origin of refugees: N/A
- Quantity of Internally Displaced Persons: N/A
- Quantity of Stateless Persons: 3,898
- Description of current human trafficking issues related to this country: N/A
- Description of Illicit Drug trafficking/use: growing producer of synthetic drugs and cannabis; transit point for US-bound ecstasy; source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for cocaine, heroin, hashish, and marijuana entering Western Europe; despite a strengthening of legislation, the country remains vulnerable to money laundering related to narcotics, automobiles, alcohol, and tobacco; significant domestic consumption of ecstasy