Luxembourg Primer Minister Xavier
Bettel on Friday married architect Gauthier Destenav, making him the
first European Union leader to marry a person of the same sex while
in office.
Wearing dark suits, the men exchanged
vows during a private ceremony officiated by Luxembourg City mayor
Lydie Polfer. Afterward, the couple greeted a crowd of about 250
outside city hall.
“I wish for everyone to be as happy
as I am. Thank you to Luxembourg's people,” Bettel told the crowd
as he hugged his new husband.
Among the guests was Belgian Prime
Minister Charles Michel.
“The message is one of good spirits,
of joy, and of congratulations, and most importantly of happiness,”
Michel told reporters. “This is the message I bring today.”
Shortly after Luxembourg's parliament
approved a same-sex marriage bill last year, Bettel told The Los
Angeles Times that he had accepted Destenay's marriage proposal.
“I said 'yes.' I have just one life
and I don't want to hide my life,” he said.