Karel De Gucht | |
|---|---|
 De Gucht in 2006 | |
| European Commissioner for Trade | |
| In office 9 February 2010 – 1 November 2014 | |
| President | José Manuel Barroso |
| Preceded by | Benita Ferrero-Waldner (Trade andNeighbourhood Policy) |
| Succeeded by | Cecilia Malmström |
| European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid | |
| In office 17 July 2009 – 9 February 2010 | |
| President | José Manuel Barroso |
| Preceded by | Louis Michel |
| Succeeded by | Andris Piebalgs (Development) Kristalina Georgieva (International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response) |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 18 July 2004 – 17 July 2009 | |
| Prime Minister | Guy Verhofstadt Yves Leterme Herman Van Rompuy |
| Preceded by | Louis Michel |
| Succeeded by | Yves Leterme |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1954-01-27)27 January 1954 (age 71) |
| Political party | Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats |
| Spouse | Mireille Schreurs |
| Children | 2, includingJean-Jacques |
| Alma mater | Free University of Brussels, Dutch |
| Website | www |
Karel Lodewijk Georgette Emmerence De Gucht (Dutch pronunciation:[ˈkaːrəldəˈɣʏxt]; born 27 January 1954) is a Belgian politician who was theEuropean Commissioner for Trade from February 2010 until 31 October 2014.[1] Previously, he served as Belgium'sMinister of Foreign Affairs from 2004 to 2009 and as theEuropean Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response from 2009 to 2010.[2]
De Gucht was born inOvermere,Belgium. He entered politics at a young age, and became president of theFlemish Liberal Students while studying at theVrije Universiteit Brussel inBrussels. He graduated with a master's degree in Law and practised as a lawyer, mainly in commercial matters, at the bar of Ghent. He later taught European Law at his university.
De Gucht became a member of theEuropean Parliament in 1980 and fulfilled this mandate until 1994. In 1989 he was the rapporteur of a landmark Parliamentary Declaration on the Fundamental Rights, leading eventually to theCharter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which was later integrated as an essential part of theTreaty of Lisbon.
De Gucht entered theFlemish Parliament after the elections of 1994 and moved to theBelgian Federal Parliament in 2003, where he remained until 2004. In 1999 he was elected party president of the Flemish liberal party (Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten). Although he was elected to theFederal Parliament in thegeneral election on 18 May 2003 and to the European Parliament in the elections of June 2004, he occupied the first seat only very briefly and the second not at all.
He entered the Belgian government on 18 July 2004 asBelgian Minister of Foreign Affairs. He served as deputy prime minister in 2008–2009. He was Chairman-in-Office of theOSCE in 2006.[3] He was a Member of theSecurity Council of the United Nations (2007–08) and Member of the European Council (2004–09).
In July 2009 De Gucht was appointed as the Belgian European Commissioner, in succession ofLouis Michel. Like his predecessor, he was in charge of Development and Humanitarian Aid, but from February 2010 onwards, he became Commissioner of Trade in theBarroso II Commission, until 31 October 2014.
He prepared and launched free trade negotiations with theUnited States, the so-calledTransatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). He achieved important trade agreements, among others withSouth-Korea (2011),Colombia andPeru (2013),Central America,Singapore,Georgia,Moldavia andUkraine (2014). In October 2014 he concluded CETA, the free trade agreement withCanada and the first ever agreement with aG7 member. He oversaw the start of trade negotiations withJapan andVietnam, resumed talks withMercosur and began investment agreement negotiations withChina. He also concluded landmark economic partnership agreements withWest Africa (ECOWAS),South Africa (SADC) andEastern Africa (EAC), covering together 75% of African economy.
De Gucht performed his ultimate duty as a commissioner by signing in Nairobi on 31 October 2014 the agreement with the Eastern African Community (EAC), consisting ofBurundi,Kenya,Rwanda,Tanzania andUganda. He also played a key role in the conclusion of anAssociation Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine, which was a direct cause ofEuromaidan and theRevolution of Dignity.
At the end of his mandate he enjoyed a strong reputation within the European Commission because of the progression in the trade portfolio during his mandate and because of his strong views on European policy questions.[4] At the end of this mandate he decided to leave politics, except on the local level, where he will be the chairman of the local council.[5]
De Gucht is well known for his outspoken views on different political issues.
On a trip to Africa in late 2004, De Gucht sparked a diplomatic controversy when he said that "there is a problem with the political class in theCongo" and questioned its ability to tackle corruption.[6] De Gucht received a lot of informal support in diplomatic circles and media and refused to retract his statement. Subsequent news stories suggested his concerns were well-founded.[7]
In November 2008 he was accused by an anonymous person and by the president of the extreme-right partyVlaams Belang of insider trading.[8] TheGhent public prosecutor ultimately decided not to pursue an investigation in the matter stating that "from the investigations it appears that Mr. De Gucht has never abused his inside knowledge of the Fortis situation, more specifically the loss in the value of its shares", and closed the case.
Later in his career, De Gucht caused controversy by his active promotion of theTransatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). Some critics accused him of being over-enthusiastic about the TTIP, playing down potential risks to European small and medium-sized companies associated with the so-calledInvestor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism, and even of ignoring public concerns about the ISDS.[9]
Poland: 1st class – Grand Cross of theOrder of Merit of the Republic of Poland.[14]De Gucht is married to Mireille Schreurs, who is a judge. They live inBerlare and they have two sons, Frédéric andJean-Jacques De Gucht.
Media related toKarel De Gucht at Wikimedia Commons
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister of Foreign Affairs 2004–2009 | Succeeded by |
| Belgian European Commissioner 2009–2014 | Succeeded by | |
| European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid 2009–2010 | Succeeded byasEuropean Commissioner for Development | |
| Succeeded byas European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response | ||
| Preceded by | European Commissioner for Trade 2010–2014 | Succeeded by |
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