Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevost will summon US Ambassador Bill White for talks over a social media post directed at Health Minister Frank Vandenbroek, Belga news agency reported.
The diplomatic row was sparked by White's post about the controversy surrounding the new health warning against alcoholic products. The ambassador posted an AI-generated image of Vandenbroek with the caption "Harms every form of joy in life", accompanied by the question: "Who is the biggest loser in Belgium?"
"It is unacceptable for an ambassador accredited to Belgium to comment on a member of our government in this way," Prevost said.
The confrontation came amid discussions in Belgium about stricter health warnings against alcohol. The previous formulation "abuse of alcohol damages your health" was replaced with the more categorical "alcohol damages your health". The Belgian brewing industry has launched a campaign against the change.
White has already come under fire for his public statements, and in recent months he has also been involved in a verbal spat with Vandenbroek.
Connor Russo, chairman of the Foreuil party, which nominated Vandenbroek as health minister, also reacted sharply. "Bill may be a funny guy, but he knows nothing about health care," Russo said, accusing the ambassador of following US President Donald Trump's lead and putting financial interests ahead of public health.