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The United States Defense Attaché Office (DAO) performs representational functions on behalf of the Secretary of Defense, the Secretaries of the Military Services, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Chiefs of the U.S. Military Services and the Commander of European Command.
The pages at this DAO website are intended to answer general inquiries regarding the tracing of former and current United States military personnel and enlistment in the United States Armed Forces, and are intended for those making such inquiries from the Kingdom of Belgium. While every effort has been made to ensure that the information is current, DAO Brussels accepts no responsibility for any inaccuracies which may occur.
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) is a U.S. Department of Agriculture agency. FAS/USEU represents the interests of U.S. farmers and the U.S. food and agricultural sector in the European Union. Our main mission is to improve market access for U.S. products and provide information to U.S. exporters on how to comply with EU rules. FAS participates in U.S. agricultural trade formulation with the purpose of opening, maintaining and increasing EU markets for U.S. food and agricultural products. This includes negotiations to reduce and eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade. Our website provides information on EU regulatory actions that may affect U.S. agricultural exports, trade policy and commodity analysis, EU import requirements, key players in EU decision-making procedures and much more.
With 450 million wealthy consumers in the 27 Member States of the European Union (the EU) – representing the United States’ largest export market in the world – the U.S. Commercial Service at the U.S. Mission to the European Union facilitates American business in the European Union through strategic partner identification, project and policy advocacy, market intelligence, and virtual trade events. On behalf of all American businesses, we also help resolve market access barriers through active monitoring of EU legislation.
Drawing on the resources of our U.S. Commercial Service offices throughout Europe, our teams of commercial diplomats and commercial specialists help American firms compete and win. In fact, the European Union’s rich consumer base, diverse economy, deep business ties to the United States, strong rule of law protections, and 25 million small and medium-size enterprises resulted in $231 billion of U.S. exports to the European Union in 2020 alone.
Find out more about the U.S. Commercial Service at USEU.
Click here for the latest edition of the EU Country Commercial Guide. Prepared annually by U.S. Mission Staff, the Country Commercial Guide contains information on the business, economic, and regulatory situation in the European Union as it affects U.S. business and foreign investments.
Since 1998 the Department of Justice has posted a senior official to USEU. The DOJ representative provides guidance, coordinates, and interacts with the European Union in relation to U.S. and EU matters relating to law enforcement and cooperation, acts as the point of contact for legal matters relating to the implementation of the two U.S. agreements with Europol and the U.S. agreement with Eurojust, and participates in other Department of Justice and USEU initiatives as needed.
The Department of Homeland Security Attaché serves as the Secretary of Homeland Security’s representative to the European Union, its agencies, and its Member States. The office works to deepen transatlantic consensus and cooperation on key homeland security issues including counterterrorism, migration, border and transportation security and facilitation, cybersecurity, and transnational crime. It does so by negotiating international agreements with the EU and regional partners and promoting the exchange of best practices between experts on both sides of the Atlantic. The Attaché also works closely with DHS Component Attaches across the EU and wider Europe to coordinate the strategic direction of the Department in the region.
Homeland Security starts with everyone, individuals, parents, business owners and community leaders. To learn more about how you can get involved, see: Get Involved | Homeland Security (dhs.gov)
For questions related to international travel, including how to file a redress request, join a frequent flier program or learn more about transportation security requirements, please see: For Travelers | Homeland Security visit dhs.gov.
The Europe and Eurasia depurate covers more than 50 economies from Reykjavik to Vladivostok and a dynamic array of macroeconomic, financial, and political issues. The combination of a tentative and imbalanced recovery from the euro area crisis, geopolitical tensions, and a vigorous G-20 process that requires active diplomacy with European counterparts presents this office with a daily set of challenges that capture the focus of high-level policy officials across the U.S. government. Our priorities currently include: supporting the economic recovery in Ukraine, countering Russian aggression, and analyzing potential channels of contagion; continuing engagement in and analysis of vulnerabilities associated with Europe’s weak growth outlook, debt overhangs, and risk of deflation; monitoring tail risks, particularly in Greece; and deepening our analysis of the longer-term challenges facing the currency union and the various institutional and country reforms needed to promote its sustainability. In addition, we continue to broaden our expertise and engagement in Eastern Europe and in Central Asia, where we are launching the next stage of several small business finance and development initiatives with the EBRD. For more information.
The European Union (EU) is the United States’ largest trading partner and our largest investment partner. Together the U.S. and EU account for 55% of the world’s GDP and nearly 40% of global trade. The United States Government works closely with the various institutions that make up the European Union to facilitate and expand transatlantic trade and investment. We also coordinate closely – through the Transatlantic Economic Framework and numerous other channels – on critical issues including climate change, energy security, regulatory cooperation, sanctions, and multilateral trade negotiations.
Economic Section at the U.S. Mission to the EU
The Economic Section at the U.S. Mission to the EU is responsible for day-to-day coordination with EU institutions on economic affairs. This includes sustained engagement with 18 of the EU’s 28 Commissioners; with 21 Commission Directorates General; with 17 Committees of the European Parliament; and regularly with the officials that deal with these issues in the permanent representations of the 27 EU member states. It also requires frequent contact with the nearly 400 U.S. companies and trade associations represented in Brussels. And, most important, it requires working closely with our Embassies in the 27 EU countries — while policy decisions are increasingly made in Brussels, they are still very much made by the governments of the member states. The Section is likewise in regular contact with virtually every U.S. government agency, from the Consumer Product Safety Commission to the Federal Reserve.
The Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs leads the Economic Section and is the primary advisor to the Ambassador and U.S. officials in Washington on U.S.-EU economic issues.
The Section’s staff is composed of representatives from the:
The Economic Minister-Counselor also works closely with other U.S. Government economic agencies assigned to the Mission to coordinate engagement on a range of economic issues, including the Department of Commerce and the Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration, the Federal Aviation Administration, USPTO, and USAID.
The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) international mission is to increase the safety and efficiency of the global civil aerospace system in an environmentally sound manner by improving regulatory oversight and harmonization and promoting a seamless, global air traffic management system.
The FAA’s Europe, Africa, and Middle East Office, headquartered in Brussels, oversees the responsibilities of the FAA in over 120 countries. The office manages 5 satellite offices and a Washington based staff, working in conjunction with U.S. diplomatic missions, foreign governments and their aviation authorities, the institutions of the European Union, air navigation service providers and the U.S. and foreign aerospace industry in order to fulfill the international aviation goals of the United States.
The FAA Office in Brussels has staff from the International Office, the Air Traffic Organization, and the Airworthiness and Flight Standards Offices.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Europe Office: The mission of FDA’s Europe’s Office is to strengthen the safety, quality, and effectiveness of medical products and food produced in Europe for export to the United States. The objective of the Europe Office is to foster collaboration and to share knowledge and information with FDA’s counterpart regulatory authorities throughout the region, both directly and through their Embassies in Washington DC. Europe Office staff are located at the FDA headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, at the EMA in London, United Kingdom, and at the U.S. Mission to the European Union, located in Brussels, Belgium.
ICE’s mission is to protect America from the cross-border crime and illegal immigration that threaten national security and public safety. This mission is executed through the enforcement of more than 400 federal statutes and focuses on immigration enforcement and combating transnational crime. With a workforce numbering approximately 20,000 including deportation officers, special agents, analysts and professional staff, ICE stands at the forefront of our nation’s efforts to strengthen border security and prevent the illegal movement of people, goods and funds into, within, and out of the United States. The agency’s broad investigative authorities are directly related to our country’s ongoing efforts to combat terrorism at home and abroad. Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations are recognized as essential law enforcement partners domestically and abroad, and either lead or participate in multiple interagency task forces that aim to target and prevent terrorism and transnational crime.
Find out more about the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Click here.
The mission of NOAA’s Europe office is to represent NOAA Fisheries interests, to facilitate transatlantic seafood trade, and to foster U.S.-EU collaboration on IUU fishing and International Ocean Governance.
This office helps U.S. seafood stakeholders to navigate the maze of complex EU legislation in the field of food labeling, tariffs, and health certification.
The United States Defense Attaché Office (DAO) performs representational functions on behalf of the Secretary of Defense, the Secretaries of the Military Services, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Chiefs of the U.S. Military Services and the Commander of European Command.
The pages at this DAO website are intended to answer general inquiries regarding the tracing of former and current United States military personnel and enlistment in the United States Armed Forces, and are intended for those making such inquiries from the Kingdom of Belgium. While every effort has been made to ensure that the information is current, DAO Brussels accepts no responsibility for any inaccuracies which may occur.
The United States’ trade and investment relationship with the countries of Europe is the largest and most complex in the world. In 2020, the trading volume between the United States and EU amounted to $930.2 billion, the largest between any two partners worldwide, and the trade relationship sustains 16 million jobs on both sides of the Atlantic. This enormous volume of transatlantic trade and investment promotes economic prosperity in the United States and EU and in the dozens of other countries that trade with the transatlantic partners. The United States and the EU continue to pursue initiatives to create new opportunities for transatlantic commerce, including through the Trade and Technology Council which was launched in 2020.
The U.S. coordinates closely with the EU on foreign affairs, which spans a wide range of topics, including but not limited to, the Middle East, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Caucasus, international development, food security, humanitarian assistance, immigration and border security, data protection, counter-terrorism, visa policy, and EU enlargement.
Political Section at the U.S. Mission to the EU
The Political Section at the U.S. Mission to the EU is responsible for the relationship between the U.S. and the EU regarding foreign and many inter-institutional affairs.
This section is composed of the following units and agencies:
Also addressing justice, law enforcement, and counter-terrorism issues at the U.S. Mission to the EU are the:
The Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) is the humanitarian bureau of the State Department. PRM promotes U.S. interests by providing protection, easing suffering, and resolving the plight of persecuted and forcibly displaced people around the world. We do this by coordinating humanitarian policy and diplomacy, providing life-sustaining assistance, working with multilateral organizations to build global partnerships, and promoting best practices in humanitarian response.
The Public Affairs Office of the U.S. Mission (USEU PA) directs the Mission’s communications programs, which aim to build understanding between our governments and people and lead to a stronger transatlantic relationship.
USEU PA is divided into the Press and Information Unit and the Programs and Exchanges Unit. The two sections work to inform and engage European audiences in discussion about U.S. policies, U.S. society, and U.S.-EU cooperation on a global agenda.
The international mission of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is to identify, analyze, and mitigate risk to international transportation security, particularly international aviation inbound flights to the U.S. Through its TSA Representatives (TSARs) stationed abroad, TSA liaises with international partners to promote the implementation of effective transportation security and works closely with foreign governments and U.S. Embassy officials to ensure the attainment of international security standards and share best practices for the full range of security requirements.
TSARs work directly with U.S. diplomatic missions, foreign governments and their aviation authorities, the institutions of the European Union, and the U.S. and foreign air carriers in order to fulfill the international aviation security standards of the U.S. and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
The United States and the European Union and its member states provide over 80% of the world’s Official Development Assistance (ODA). Cooperation in development and humanitarian assistance is vital to fostering economic growth, improving food security, and saving lives in the developing world and in conflict zones.
USAID is the lead U.S. Government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies to realize their potential. Present in over 100 countries, USAID promotes broadly shared economic prosperity, strengthens democracy and good governance, improves global health, furthers education, helps countries prevent and recover from conflicts and provides humanitarian assistance when natural and man-made disasters strike.
The international mission of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is to coordinate and support foreign initiatives, program, and activities within CBP. Through its Attaché offices abroad, CBP strives to extend U.S. borders by implementing programs and initiatives that promote anti-terrorism, global border security, non-proliferation, export controls, immigration, and capacity building. CBP focuses on international cooperation and strengthening multi and bi-lateral relationships to achieve international agreements and joint efforts that both facilitate and secure legitimate trade. CBP promotes expansion of the World Customs Organization (WCO) Framework of Standards for supply chain security and facilitation.
The Mission’s IP Attaché office strives to improve intellectual property (IP) systems internationally for the benefit of U.S. stakeholders by addressing IP issues arising in the region.
The IP attaché office is dedicated to helping U.S. businesses understand and address IP challenges and issues they may face in foreign markets. IP attaché office services are designed to provide them with the information they need to:
For more information about the IP Attaché program, please visit the USPTO website.
Watch Rachel Bae discuss her work as an IP attaché in Brussels.
The U.S. State Department’s U.S.-European Media Hub promotes transatlantic relations by connecting U.S. policy makers and experts with European radio and television broadcasters.
Our goal is to help media organizations in Europe gain access to policymakers throughout the U.S. government for interviews on timely topics. We aim to connect U.S. policy voices and perspectives with European publics through media engagement. As part of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of International Media Engagement, we work hand in hand with the Public Affairs Office of the U.S. Mission to the European Union and with Public Affairs Offices at U.S. Embassies throughout Europe.
U.S. – European Media Hub Offers Services for Journalists
Broadcast studio facilities to conduct live or taped TV and radio interviews with U.S. policymakers, in a variety of formats or resolutions and with satellite and file transfer capability. Broadcast-quality interviews with U.S. policymakers available for use on DVIDS.
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