Belgium traditionally presents itself as a strong supporter of multilateral security cooperation and aims to be a reliable partner in the EU and NATO. Nevertheless, the uninterrupted decline of Belgium’s defence budget paints a different picture, that of a country that rides cheap on the defence efforts of its partners. Belgium does make equitable contributions to multinational military operations, but the lack of defence investments threatens to undercut its ability to continue to make substantial contributions to multilateral operations. This article builds on the literature on small states and military burden sharing to explain Belgium’s post-Cold War defence policy. More specifically, it argues that Belgium’s behaviour is anything but irrational, given that it allows to gain a high degree of security and influence at relatively low political and financial costs.

比利时传统上将自己视为多边安全合作的坚定支持者，并力争成为欧盟和北约的可靠伙伴。尽管如此，比利时国防预算的持续下降却描绘出了另一番景象，一个比利时在其合作伙伴的国防努力上不愿花钱的国家。比利时确实为多国军事行动作出了公平的贡献，但是缺乏国防投资威胁到比利时削弱继续为多边行动作出实质性贡献的能力。本文基于有关小国和军事负担分担的文献来解释比利时的冷战后防御政策。更具体地说，它认为比利时的行为绝非理性，