On Tuesday June 10, 2025, the University of Liège honored Melchior Wathelet, Minister of State, former judge and Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union, at a ceremony held in its Salle académique.
A graduate in law and economics from ULiège, then in law from Harvard University, Melchior Wathelet has distinguished himself by a remarkable career in the service of European law and public institutions. He has also been actively involved in university life, teaching European institutional law and participating in a number of initiatives that have contributed to the university's reputation, notably L'Embarcadère du Savoir and the HEC Liège Alumni Advisory Board.
On the occasion of this ceremony, the University awarded him the Alumni en Lumière medal, an honorary distinction saluting his professional commitment and enduring attachment to his alma mater.
Melchior Wathelet then gave a two-part talk on Belgium and the European Union.
Firstly, he humorously evoked the ideas that the personalities he had worked with in the European Union had of Belgians. He then went on to discuss current European issues, focusing in particular on security and values, while offering some food for thought on the direction the European Union should take.
The evening concluded with a friendly drink.
Find below a conversation about Europe between Melchior Wathelet and Pr Jonathan Wildemeersch. To find out more about Melchior Wathelet's career, seearticle in Quinzième Jour.
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February 23, 2026, the "Alumni en Lumière" ceremony honoured Marine Simonis and Christophe Remy, two graduates with exemplary paths, at the intersection of athletic performance, commitment, and self‑surpassing.
This new mobility policy is a strategic document setting out the ambitions and actions to be implemented to improve travel to and around the campuses of the University of Liège by 2030.
