US military wants to store material in Zutendaal

The US military wants to use the Belgian air base in Zutendaal for the storage of military equipment. To this end, it has already requested and received permission from the Belgian government, however a final decision has yet to be made, writes Het Belang van Limburg.

Located about 80 km east of Brussels, Zutendaal was originally a NATO base where the US military stored equipment. In 2000 the base was handed over to the Belgian army, which uses it to store retired aircraft, manage military stock and destroy ammunition.

The air base currently employs about 140 people. If the plans go ahead, the initiative could yield between 200 to 250 new jobs at the air base.

The US military has now asked to again start using 70,000 square meters of storage in Zutendaal in the framework of the NATO reassurance measures. The Americans want the equipment stored closer to their Eastern European partners.

Zutendaal would be used to store conventional equipment such as tanks, vehicles and ammunition, but not nuclear weapons. The Belgian Government responded positively to the request of the US, and is now awaiting their final answer.