Annual Report 2025: Friction – On Peace and How To Make Peace Resilient

Publication date: 15/04/2026

Friction, polarization… Under the influence of numerous geopolitical crises and mounting pressure on the economy, events that can be described as “conflicts” also emerged in Flanders in 2025.

Conflicts and polarization do not necessarily have to result in damage. Whether the tensions we face escalate largely depends on how we respond to them: in a destructive manner, or in a constructive and non-violent one.

This annual report offers a retrospective of 2025 and also includes, among other elements, eight brief summaries describing how the Flemish Peace Institute addressed a range of sensitive and potentially explosive topics in a constructive way. These include defence, strategic export controls, radicalization, firearms, Flemish foreign policy, conflict in the classroom, and education about violence.

Download the 2025 Annual Report of the Flemish Peace Institute here.
We presented the annual report in the Flemish Parliament on 24 March 2026. You can watch the presentation (in Dutch) here.