American comedian and satirist Jon Stewart has turned international politics into punchlines once again — this time by jokingly “claiming” Belgium in a playful Instagram post that quickly
went viral.
The longtime host of 'The Daily Show’ shared the mock announcement as a clear jab at former US president Donald Trump’s widely reported interest in acquiring Greenland. Mimicking the language of territorial ambition, Stewart declared that the United States now wants Belgium and gave the country a tongue-in-cheek ultimatum of 48 hours to respond.
“We want Belgium!!!” Stewart wrote. “Why should Belgium have all the Belgium?? We want it!!” He went on to joke that the US could not risk China or Russia getting hold of Belgium’s “delicious pralines.” As mock leverage, Stewart jokingly threatened to stop allowing the Jacksonville Jaguars to play American football games in Germany if Belgium failed to comply. “You have 48 hours…” he concluded.
The post was met with amusement in Belgium, including from several politicians who were quick to join in on the joke. Sammy Mahdi, leader of the Flemish Christian Democrats (CD&V), humorously commented: “I pray that Trump realises this is a joke.” Brussels MP Celia Groothedde of the Flemish Greens added her own warning, saying Trump already considers Brussels a “shithole” — “and that’s totally fine. Don’t give him ideas, ok?”
Belgian social media users also chimed in with self-deprecating humor. One commenter warned Stewart that Belgium’s soil contains “nothing but potatoes we turn into fries and one of the highest tax rates on the planet.” Another joked that any invasion would be doomed to fail because road signs are bilingual and invaders would be forced to stop at every bar for a drink.
Stewart’s Belgian “annexation” joke follows a similar segment on 'The Daily Show' last week, where he skewered the logic behind Trump’s Greenland ambitions. In that monologue, Stewart sarcastically suggested an obvious alternative to territorial expansion.
“If only we could deter China or Russia from annexing Greenland in some other way,” he said. “We could form an alliance with Denmark and Greenland. Maybe even with all the North Atlantic countries. What would we call it? A North Atlantic Treaty Organisation or something… Oh well, we’ll never know.”
As usual, Stewart’s satire struck a chord by blending current geopolitics with absurd humor — and by reminding audiences that sometimes comedy can be the sharpest form of commentary. Photo by DoD News, Wikimedia commons.