On Monday, the President of the Republic will receive the Chinese Vice President, Han Zheng, in Belem. The bilateral agenda and “international news matters” are on the table.
The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Souza, will hold a working lunch on Monday in Belem with the Vice President of China, Han Zheng, with bilateral relations and matters relating to international affairs on the agenda.
According to a note issued by the Presidency of the Republic, Han Zheng has been visiting Portugal since Sunday, where he will stay until Wednesday.
“The working lunch aims to further deepen the excellent relations between the two countries and is a moment in which, together, issues on the bilateral agenda between the People’s Republic of China and Portugal, as well as matters related to international current affairs, are analyzed and developed,” reads the same note.
On Saturday night, after going to the Food Bank Against Hunger (BA), in Alcántara, Lisbon, the President of the Republic referred to diplomatic relations with China in the current global situation.
After highlighting Portugal’s alignment with the positions of NATO and the European Union with regard to security, Marcelo Rebelo de Souza spoke of “countries that have positions that are further afield, but are no less interested in the situation in Ukraine, as in Brazil. than in China”.
“The Chinese Vice President is coming to Portugal. China has now taken on a much more intense role with regard to this problem, and Portugal is an important platform for dialogue. Of course, we are where we are, we are allies of Ukraine, we are allies of NATO and the European Union, but we maintain On dialogue with whatever might help in the next moment, in the long run, in building peace.”
On April 19, the President of the Republic received the Chief Executive of the Macao SAR, Hou Iat Singh, in Belem, where he dealt with law matters agreed with China in 1999 and taught Portuguese.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Marcelo Rebelo de Souza paid a state visit to the People’s Republic of China between April and May 2019, which started in Beijing, passed through Shanghai and ended in the Macao SAR.
In Macau, the head of state reiterated the message that the “difference” of this special administrative region is what gives it value, noting the importance of the presence of the Portuguese language.
Noting that the Portuguese language is currently spoken more widely in Macau than it was at the time of the Portuguese administration, the President of the Republic expressed his certainty that it will remain after 2049.
Counterbalancing his three-day visit to the People’s Republic of China, at a press conference, he declared himself today “very pleased” with the way it had gone, highlighting the elevation to “the highest degree of political relations”.
The Head of State then highlighted the Memorandum of Understanding that establishes a new level for bilateral political relations: “The maximum possible degree of political relations has been reached at the level of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, France and other countries. Germany, political partners in a dialogue that goes beyond a mere strategic partnership.”
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