Flemish Prime Minister Jan Gambon met British Minister for Culture, Media and Sport Lucy Fraser on Monday. Gambon, who is on a two-day visit to the United Kingdom to strengthen relations between the country and Flanders, has called for, among other things, to file recognition of World War I sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
With Monday’s meeting with Foreign Secretary Lucy Fraser, Prime Minister Jean Gambon wanted to make clear Flanders’ ambitions to strengthen relations with the UK. Post-Brexit, Flanders is categorically looking towards the UK and wants to establish more bilateral consultations and frameworks for agreements, including with the federal states of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
In addition, the Prime Minister, who is also the Flemish Minister of Culture, wanted to enhance bilateral cooperation in the field of culture during the meeting. Among the things Gambon mentioned on Monday was the file for recognizing World War I monuments and cemeteries as world heritage. This file will be on the agenda of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee again in September. In that commission, which has to make a final decision, there are many countries that were part of the former Commonwealth. These are India, Nigeria, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Zambia and South Africa. Because the United Kingdom still enjoys a privileged relationship with those countries, Gambon hopes that the United Kingdom can exert a positive influence, the Prime Minister said on Monday after the meeting.
In 2017, Flanders, Wallonia and France submitted a file to UNESCO for World Heritage recognition of 139 monuments and cemeteries from World War I along the Western Front. For Flanders, this includes the Ysertoren crypt and the Tyne Cot Cemetery in Zonnebeke. The recognition file was already submitted in 2017, but then the Heritage Committee postponed the processing of the file indefinitely because it first wanted to consider nomination files that had links to recent conflicts or so-called “negative memories”. Flemish Heritage Minister Matthias Dipnelli (N-VA) has previously stated that he considers now is the right time. A decision in the case is expected around September 21.
After stopping in London, on Monday the Prime Minister traveled to Cardiff, where he will visit Cardiff Castle on Monday evening. A meeting is scheduled for Tuesday with Welsh Prime Minister Mark Drakeford and this will be followed by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with Wales on topics such as cyber security and culture.
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