About us

On 31 August 2023, Mr Jan Bayart presented his credentials as Belgium’s new ambassador in Norway to HRH The Crown Prince Regent, Crown Prince Haakon substituting for HM King Harald V.

On 17 October 2023 Mr Jan Bayart presented his credentials as Belgium’s new ambassador in Iceland to President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson.

Ambassador Bayart joined the diplomatic service in 1996.  He started his career as a diplomat at the Belgian embassy in Pretoria (1998-2002) following which he served at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Brussels (2002-2004) and at Belgium’s delegation to the European Union (2004-2008).  He then served as diplomatic advisor to the Secretary of State for EU Affairs until the summer of 2011 after which he was posted to the Belgian embassies in Paris (2011-2015) and London (2015-2019) as Deputy Head of Mission with the rank of Minister-Counsellor.  From 2019 to 2023 he again served in Brussels, at the Foreign Ministry’s EU Directorate General.

The ambassador will endeavour to build further on the excellent bilateral relationship between Norway and Belgium, to advance their common understanding of international issues, and to contribute to the pursuit of common goals.  Continuing to offer high quality consular services to the growing Belgian community in Norway, already 1,900 strong, also figures among his priorities.

He was born in Louvain in 1970 but grew up in Ypres.  He studied law at the universities of Namur and Louvain, as well as international relations at the latter, and continued his education at the College of Europe in Bruges focusing on EU governance studies.  He is fluent in Dutch, French and English.