Justus Lipsius building, Convention center and press center in the European Quarter, Brussels, Belgium

The Justus Lipsius building is a conference and press centre on Rue de la Loi in the European Quarter of Brussels. Its light grey stone facade has a central bay clad in dark glass panels, flanked by stone columns, with narrow glazing strips on the left and a wider glazed section on the right. A flat roof with a metal railing tops the left wing.

Construction started in 1989 after older houses on Justus Lipsiusstraat were cleared, and the building opened in 1995 as the main seat of the Council of the European Union. It hosted European Council summits from 2002 until 2017, when those top-level meetings moved to the neighboring Europa building, though the complex still serves lower-level meetings and press activities.

Visitors passing through the entrance hall see flags of all EU member states hanging above a central globe, which signals the building's role as a shared workspace for European cooperation. In the press areas, journalists gather in a practical, no-frills setting, where the clatter of laptops and hurried questions sets the rhythm during EU briefings.

Plan to arrive on foot or by public transport, since the nearby Schuman station serves metro and rail lines and the surrounding streets are often busy with officials and staff. If you have a meeting or accreditation, allow extra time for the security checks and follow the signs toward the correct entrance or connecting walkway.

In 2003 it emerged that a sophisticated eavesdropping system had been installed during construction, and some devices were found cast into the concrete. The building also kept the press centre after the Council and European Council moved to the Europa building in January 2017, and the two are joined by two skyways.