The Minister of Foreign Affairs has not (yet) visited Ukraine since taking office this summer. For Hadja Lahbib, the reason is simply practical: “It’s a country at war and so it’s not as simple as that. Our agendas have to match,” she points out. “We are in the process of identifying different projects that we are going to undertake,” she says, taking in particular the protection of Ukrainian heritage as an example.
Martin Buxant’s guest also returns to criticism of European spending – nearly 19 billion euros – in the context of the conflict in Ukraine while households are being hit hard by an unprecedented energy crisis. “We must not be mistaken. It is not the sanctions that are driving up prices but the war that Russia is waging”, nuances the minister who reiterates her confidence in the strategy currently being pursued by the West.
“Wearing the veil is a very complex subject”
Hadja Lahbib also speaks regarding the popular uprising taking place in Iran. The country’s women are removing their veils in protest at the suspicious death of Mahsa Amini. In response, the Iranian regime is trying to repress the demonstrations by using violence: “We can only support them,” said the liberal minister. “I was extremely touched by these women who demonstrate for rights that seem to us acquired,” she says. In Belgium, the vision of the Reform Movement remains the ban on wearing the veil in positions of authority.
For the politician, the importance lies in “fair and equal” measures: “If we decide that there is no wearing of external religious symbols, it must be the case for everyone”, she confides, stressing that “her opinion had not changed”. The politician also specifies that wearing the veil is a “complex subject”. “It does not have the same value in Iran as in Belgium,” she adds.
“Some business leaders earn much better than ministers”
Prime Minister Alexander De Croo is proposing to reduce the annual salary of ministers by 8% this year as a sign of the crisis contribution. An operation that should allow the government to retouch nearly €20,000. “It is a proposal which is on the table and which has not been adopted at all, but I do not think that this is what will make it possible to stem inflation”, explains Hadja Lahbib. “It’s to set an example, but why stop only at the political world? I think that there are business leaders who still earn a much better living,” argues the minister.
Finally, the guest who was a journalist for a long time spoke regarding her time in politics a few months following taking office: “Politics is a real service to society. I put my dreams and which made me happy aside to devote myself fully to the challenges that are mine”, she concludes.