Key facts
- Belgium's Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot summoned U.S. Ambassador Bill White.
- The summoning followed White's Instagram post mocking Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke.
- The post featured an AI-generated image of Vandenbroucke on a cigar box with a modified health warning.
- Prévot called the ambassador's language unacceptable and an insult.
- This is the second time White has been summoned by Belgian officials this year.
Belgium's Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot has summoned U.S. Ambassador Bill White for a second time this year following an Instagram post by White that mocked the country's Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke. The ambassador, described as an appointee of U.S. President Donald Trump, posted an AI-generated image of Vandenbroucke on a cigar box with a modified health warning, reading "Damages every form of joy in life." Prévot stated that it is unacceptable for an ambassador to use such insulting language against a government member. The foreign ministry confirmed the summoning, which was first reported by news agency Belga. Conner Rousseau, the leader of Vandenbroucke's party, Vooruit, also criticized White's post, suggesting the ambassador "knows nothing about healthcare" and "only follows what daddy Trump says." This incident marks the second time White has been summoned by Belgian officials this year; he was previously called in February after accusing Brussels of antisemitism over a probe into Jewish mohels performing circumcisions without medical qualifications, which the Belgian government viewed as interference in domestic and judicial affairs.