In exclusive comments to Doha News at the Doha Forum, Belgium’s interior minister says security and cyber cooperation with Qatar has been strengthened as bilateral ties deepen.

Belgium and Qatar have stepped up security cooperation following high-level talks in Doha ahead of the Doha Forum, as both sides look to strengthen ties in security, migration management and cyber cooperation.

The discussions form part of a broader push to deepen bilateral relations after months of diplomatic engagement between the two countries.

“This is my first visit […] I had a very good meeting with my counterpart here in Qatar,” Belgium’s Interior Minister Bernard Quintin told Doha News on the sidelines of the Doha Forum on Sunday.

Quintin met on Friday at the National Command Center with Qatar’s Minister of Interior and Commander of the Internal Security Force Lekhwiya, Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani, to discuss ways to enhance security cooperation, strengthen bilateral relations, and explore areas of mutual interest.

“We spoke about how we can fulfil the strategic agreement that we have between Qatar and Belgium in this chapter, that’s about security and Home Affairs,” Quintin said.

He also visited Qatar’s Cybersecurity Center.

“I have made a very good visit to the and also to the cybersecurity Center, and those are already two areas where we can work together,” he said.

In his comments to Doha News, Quintin also addressed Europe’s migration policies, rejecting claims that they were anti-migration.

“But first of all, I wouldn’t say that we have an anti-migration policy in Europe,” he said.

Together with Belgium’s Asylum and Migration Minister Anneleen Van Bossuyt, Quintin announced in June that from summer 2025, federal police, local police, and the Immigration Office will carry out targeted checks across Belgium.

“We have migration policies, so controlled migration, and of course, we are combatting the illegal migration like every country has to do.”

According to the European Migration Network, the announcement drew responses from police unions, opposition parties, and migration experts, who raised concerns over the capacity required to implement the checks and their effectiveness.

Quintin said the measures are not anti immigration but are designed to manage migration fluxes in an orderly manner.

“So we have to do that in an orderly manner in order to be sure that we can manage the fluxes and that we can integrate everybody in our societies.”

Belgium and Qatar have reinforced their ties following a two-day visit to Doha in June led by Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot.

The visit resulted in a new strategic partnership focusing on politics, economics, energy, security, and humanitarian issues, with plans for greater cooperation on conflict resolution and information sharing.