Belgium–France border Belgium–France border The <dfn>Belgium–France border</dfn> separates France and Belgium countries and is 620 km long. Part of it is defined by the Leie river. The western end is at the North Sea ( near De Panne and Bray-Dunes). The eastern end is at the Belgium–France–Luxembourg tripoint (at near Athus and Mont-Saint-Martin). The straight distance between these points is 289 km. Since 1995 Belgium–France are parts of the Schengen Area. This means there are no permanent border controls at this border, but there has been temporary controls. The Belgian side of the border is shared by, from north to south, the
Belgium in World War I Belgium also received a small slice of territory in the east of the country (known as Eupen-Malmedy) from Germany, which remains part of the country to this day. Its demands for a slice of Zeeland in the Netherlands (which had remained neutral during the conflict), were rejected and led to ill-will. Britain was willing to guarantee Belgian borders only if it committed to neutrality, which Albert rejected. Instead, Belgium became a junior partner with France in an occupation of part of Germany under a 1920 Treaty. As outlined in the Treaty of Versailles, Belgium was also given a League of