February 2nd, 2026. Brussels, Belgium

I will not be the King remembered for fracturing the country.

Those words rang out across the country as the leak began on Hoplr and quickly spread to Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter. Prime Minister Bart De Wever had failed to make a planned speech at Lambermont, citing security concerns with the large number of Walloon protesters chanting for him to “démissionner lâchement” and “descendre aux enfers, bâtard.” The people were angry and wanting nothing more than the head of Bart on a pole. “They call us lazy and say we take advantage of the Flemish, they know nothing of what Wallonia is capable of.” one protester said to a local news crew, “Maybe the Flemish were right, maybe we do need to kick them to the curb and establish a proper Walloon state for ourselves.” The protests weren’t one sided, however, several prominent Flemish politicians and community leaders found themselves counter-protesting. Chants of “Bart heeft niets verkeerd gedaan!” “Wij houden van onze premier.” and “Vlaanderen voor de Vlamingen” spread across the city.

Things went from bad to worse for the Prime Minister. Mouvement réformateur and Les Engagés, joining the coalition initially to secure economic promises, have come out with an ultimatum. A televised apology in 24 hours or they will pull their support for the coalition, resign several ministers, and sink the country back into political instability. And then it continued to get even worse as De Wever, guided by more extreme members in his cabinet, initially refused to apologize. Labor unions, already disgruntled by the lack of support from this government, have called for a general strike across all of Belgium in a day locals are calling “The national day of action.” Several Flemish symbols in the Walloon south have been targeted raising fear of continued sectarian violence.

King Phillipe, himself French, in a rare move by the Belgian crown appeared across Belgian TVs and media. “I, and the Crown, are guarantors of peace and harmony in our great state. The Prime Minister has failed to ensure all Belgians are treated with respect and dignity. I can offer no greater rebuke beyond a call for him and his government to resign at once. He does not represent the values and future of our country and there is no doubt in my mind that a continued De Wever government will drag us down.”

“Citizens, friends, for two hundred years this house of cards we call Belgium has been built on a foundation of polite fictions. Fictions we have historically agreed to look past. Well today those fictions have crumbled. I am told that I have caused a great offense by telling the truth. My description of the economic reality of Flanders supporting the south was said to be “unrepresentative of Belgium values.” Recently even King Phillipe, exceeding his mandate as a constitutional monarch, has called for me to resign for the future of a country held together by lies. To those who demand an apology I simply have this to say: Truth does not owe to the discomforted an apology.

For decades the wealth fought for and earned by Flanders has flown into the pockets of Wallonia. A system that rewards stagnation and punishes initiative. We are told by those that benefit from this system that Belgium is a sacred bond. A bond indivisible. A bond that drags us into deadlock. A bond that shackles us to the corpse of a united republic. His majesty has seen fit to break his neutrality to defend this failing state. By doing so he has not saved the country. He has anchored himself, and his Crown, to the sinking ship of the lie that is Belgium. If King Phillipe wishes to be the last anchor of the corpse of Belgium so be it. May him and his crown drown with the state.

The era of compromise is over. My government has a clear mandate and that mandate will not be measured by centimeters but by meters. I am laying down the line in the sand:

• Financial Autonomy: No more transfers to a dying south. Every euro taxed in Flanders must remain in Flanders.

• Confederalism: We will transform this state into a voluntary association of equals. We will share that which we choose, defense perhaps, but we will govern ourselves.

If the Francophones find this arrangement unagreeable, and if the Crown wishes to continue to meddle in politics, we believe the federal government must end. I will not resign. I was not given my position by the will of some monarch but by the people to lead. To those in the south who are outraged use that energy to build your state and stop demanding handouts from Flanders.

The choice is simple really. We can have a peaceful, adult, and logical divorce through confederalism or we can continue this slow-motion collapse until there is nothing to do but bury the bodies. Flanders has waited long enough.”

Following the speech heard ‘round the EU, MR and Les Engages have formally withdrawn from the cabinet. Without the support of its Francophone allies Bart De Wever in one week has managed to find himself removed from his position and King Phillipe has formally appointed a mediator to lead the state while elections are being setup.

BELGIUM HAS ENTERED INTO ITS DEEPEST EXISTENTIAL CRISIS SINCE ITS FOUNDING