The President of the Republic will begin a five-day official visit to Canada this Wednesday in Montreal with a program dedicated to the Portuguese expatriate communities, but which also includes a meeting with the Prime Minister of Canada.
The visit to Canada, where about 450,000 people of Portuguese descent live according to the 2021 census, coincides with the 70th anniversary of the arrival of the first officially recorded Portuguese emigrants.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is flying commercial this Wednesday from Lisbon and is scheduled to arrive in Montreal at 2:10 p.m. local time (7:10 p.m. in mainland Portugal).
This Wednesday, at the end of the day, the head of state will hold a meeting and dinner with the Portuguese community at a hotel in Montreal, Canada’s second largest city after Toronto.
In Canada, the President of the Republic will be accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, João Gomes Cravinho, the Secretary of State for Portuguese Communities, Paulo Cafofo, and members of the six parties with the largest representation in Parliament.
Marcelo Rebelo de Souza will be in Montreal this Wednesday and Thursday, and then in Toronto, the country’s largest city, and Mississauga until Sunday.
His meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is scheduled for Friday morning.
The deputies included in his delegation during this visit are João Azevedo and Castro of the PS and Francisco Pimentel of the PSD, both elected by the Azores, where most of the Portuguese emigration to Canada originates. Diogo Pacheco de Amorim from Chega, Rodrigo Saraiva, parliamentary leader of the Liberal Initiative, Bruno Diaz from the PCP and José Soeiro from the Bloc de Esquerda.
From Canada, the President of the Republic will travel to the United States of America to take part in the general debate of the 78th session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York until September 22.
His official visit to Canada was preceded by visits by Prime Minister António Costa in 2018, President of the Assembly of the Republic Augusto Santos Silva in 2022 on the occasion of Portugal Day, and the Portuguese Secretary of State for Portuguese Affairs. Communities, Paulo Cafofo, in May of this year.
The previous president of the republic, Cavaco Silva, was in Canada in 2014, but only in Toronto for two days.
Former head of state Jorge Sampaio Jorge Sampaio made a more extensive visit, lasting eight days, during which he visited eight cities, from the west to the east coast: Vancouver, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Sao Joao da Terra Nova.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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