Belgium and the Netherlands swap land

The border between Belgium and the Netherlands is to be redrawn near Maastricht, in the southeast of the Netherlands, writes Knack. The change will come to an uninhabited area along the Meuse River, says the FPS Foreign Affairs.

The two countries will essentially swap parts of their territory, with Belgium gaining 3.09 hectares of Dutch territory, and the Netherlands gaining 16.37 hectares of Belgian ground.

The current border at Visé, Belgium, Eijsden-Margraten and Maastricht, the Netherlands, was established in 1843 and follows the course of the river. In 1961, however, it was decided to straighten the path of the winding river in order to simplify the route for ships.

This created peninsulas in the Meuse, one of which is only accessible by boat. Because it was difficult for Belgian police to reach the peninsula, the site became a haven for drugs, littering and naturism.

The governors of Dutch Limburg and the Belgian province of Liège on Thursday signed a memorandum to rectify the situation, giving the Netherlands one Belgian peninsula in exchange for two Dutch peninsulas.

The Royal Boundary Commission will now propose a new border treaty, which must be signed by the foreign ministers. The treaty will then need to be approved by both parliaments, but not before they agree on a number of practicalities, including nature conservation, spatial planning and water management.