The sole PAN MP considered this Friday the election of former Prime Minister António Costa to the presidency of the European Council as an opportunity that “should not be missed,” warning of the “many challenges” that Europe will face in the coming years.
Speaking to journalists at the Assembly of the Republic, Ines de Sousa Real began by welcoming António Costa and noted that “the representation of Portugal in the European Council is, in fact, an opportunity for the country that should not be missed.”
“Through elections of this type, whether at the UN or in other positions, Portugal has taken on board not only our vision, but also the problems and the opportunity to participate in decision-making at European or international level that can guarantee progress in terms of the causes and problems that we represent,” he said.
The PAN spokesman also said that “Europe will face many challenges in the coming years, be it its enlargement, the fight against climate change, the 2030 Agenda and the challenge of leaving no one behind on social issues.”
“What awaits PAN and the challenge that António Costa faces in these elections is that he does not forget precisely these great challenges that we also had the opportunity to work on here in Portugal until the last Legislative Assembly and that, thanks to the hand of Parliament, in PAN itself we have managed to ensure that nature and animals are not left behind, and we also hope that this will happen in this new mandate,” stressed Inês de Souza Real.
Former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa was elected on Thursday evening by the heads of state and government of the European Union (EU) as President of the European Council for a two-and-a-half-year term, taking office on 1 December 2024.
António Costa will become the first Portuguese and the first socialist to head the European Council.
Despite the prime minister’s resignation in 2023 following judicial investigations, Costa was chosen to succeed Belgian Charles Michel (in office since 2019) at the leadership of the European Council, which brings together the heads of government and states of the European bloc.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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