Belgian rally over U.S. birth-control stockpile sparks transatlantic concern

Dozens of women’s rights activists rallied near the U.S. Embassy in Brussels on Thursday to protest what they described as plans by the Trump administration to destroy a stockpile of birth-control supplies held in Belgium for women living in hardship in Africa.

The protest Highlighted a track of concerns tied to a U.S.-funded warehouse in Geel, Belgium, where contraceptives and related products have been stored while the future of the stockpile and the management of foreign aid programs remain in flux following the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development. Officials have not finalized a path forward, but activists warn that incinerating the stockpile could deprive millions of women of life-saving methods and could have deadly consequences for some.

The group, which numbered about 50 participants, gathered in a public square near the embassy, chanting, 'Shame, shame, shame, Trump is to blame,' and carrying wooden crosses bearing messages about health and women’s lives. Organizers tied the demonstration to broader anxieties about how the United States might handle a stockpile valued at more than $9 million and funded by U.S. taxpayers that was intended for distribution to women in conflict zones or refugee camps.

The stockpile includes contraceptive pills, implants and intrauterine devices, and its fate has become a focal point for critics who say the Trump administration’s approach to foreign aid and reproductive health could weaken global health infrastructure. Senators Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, and Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, have highlighted the material’s importance and pressed for options that would preserve access for women in need. In Brussels, activists argued that destroying the supplies would translate into hundreds of thousands of unwanted pregnancies and potentially hundreds of deaths linked to pregnancy or childbirth.

The head of Europe at the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Micah Grzywnowicz, said the supplies should have gone to five African countries—the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Mali, Tanzania and Zambia—and noted the impact in Tanzania, where the stockpile could have addressed about one-third of the health system’s needs. 'In human numbers, it is one and a half million women and girls who are supposed to get life-saving supplies,' Grzywnowicz said, adding that the move appears to be part of a broader strategy to recalibrate or dismantle the global health framework.

A U.S. State Department official said last month that no final decision had been made on the contraceptives and that the administration was still determining the way forward. The remarks came as a chorus of diplomatic and advocacy groups urged caution and urged that the supplies be preserved for distribution rather than incinerated.

Belgian authorities have pursued diplomatic avenues to spare the stockpile from destruction. Officials in Belgium have discussed moving the supplies out of the Geel warehouse, and the regional government in Flanders has a ban on incinerating reusable goods. A ministry spokesperson said no exemption from the ban has been requested or granted to date, and inspectors from the Flemish environment department checked the warehouse last week to confirm the supplies remained in place. Authorities warned incineration facilities in the region to alert officials if any attempt were made to burn the stockpile.

Belgian officials have indicated talks with U.S. diplomats about alternative paths to preserve the stockpile, including possible relocation to a site where it could be distributed to the countries identified by advocacy groups and international health organizations. The debate has underscored broader questions about how the United States should approach foreign-aid programs after the dissolution of USAID and about the mechanisms that govern how such material is stored, managed and eventually deployed.

The situation illustrates the tension between emergency planning and long-term health security. Advocates stress that delaying or blocking the distribution of contraception can elevate risk for women in crisis zones who rely on predictable access to birth-control methods to prevent unplanned pregnancies, reduce maternal mortality and support broader health-system resilience. They cautioned that the loss of the stockpile could produce lasting consequences for communities in the five countries most commonly cited as beneficiaries, particularly in settings already strained by conflict, displacement and limited health infrastructure.

As Belgian and European officials continue negotiations with U.S. counterparts, activists in Brussels and allies abroad await clarity on whether the stockpile will be preserved and, if so, how and when it will be delivered to the communities that need it most. The outcome could reverberate beyond Brussels, shaping debates about how donor nations balance regulatory constraints, environmental protections, and humanitarian commitments in a rapidly shifting global aid landscape.