Federal Government of Belgium in the context of "Political minister"

The Belgian Congo (French: Congo belge, pronounced [kɔ̃ɡo bɛlʒ]; Dutch: Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. It is today the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Colonial rule in the Congo began in the late 19th century. King Leopold II of the Belgians attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely unexploited Congo Basin. Their ambivalence resulted in Leopold establishing a colony himself. With support from a number of Western countries, Leopold achieved international recognition of the Congo Free State in 1885. By the end of the 19th century, the violence used by Free State officials against indigenous Congolese and a ruthless system of economic exploitation led to intense diplomatic pressure on Belgium to take official control of the country, which it did by creating the Belgian Congo in 1908.

The Cinquantenaire Arcade (French: Arcade(s) du Cinquantenaire; Dutch: Arcade(s) van het Jubelpark) is a memorial arcade in the centre of the Parc du Cinquantenaire/Jubelpark in Brussels, Belgium. The centrepiece is a monumental triple arch known as the Cinquantenaire Arch (French: Arc du Cinquantenaire; Dutch: Triomfboog van het Jubelpark). It is topped by a bronze quadriga sculptural group with a female charioteer, representing the Province of Brabant personified raising the national flag.

The monument is oriented facing Brussels' city centre, on one side in the axis of the Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, which, crossing the Leopold Quarter, ends in the Royal Quarter, seat of the Belgian Parliament, the Belgian Government and the Royal Palace; and on the other side, in the axis of the Avenue de Tervueren/Tervurenlaan, leads to the former Palace of the Colonies, today's Royal Museum for Central Africa, in the suburb of Tervuren. The Cinquantenaire area is served by Brussels-Schuman railway station, as well as by the metro stations Schuman and Merode on lines 1 and 5.

The Council of Ministers (Dutch: Ministerraad; French: Conseil des ministres; German: Ministerrat) is the supreme executive organ of the Federal Government of the Kingdom of Belgium. It is a cabinet composed of the Prime Minister, who leads it, and up to fourteen senior ministers. Federal secretaries of state (junior ministers) are members of the government, but not part of the Council. The King of the Belgians historically presided over the Council, but this has not happened since 1957. The Council of Ministers formally became a permanent policy structure with the constitutional revision of 1970.