The President of the Republic said this Wednesday that Portugal “has a lot of weight” at the community level, but believes that the choice of leadership in the institutions of the European Union (EU) will depend on the results of next year’s European elections.
“Obviously, Portugal has a lot of weight thanks to its MEPs and the President of Parliament. [Europeu] This was discussed – both by the Portuguese authorities, and I’m not talking about the president of the republic, but I’m talking about the government, for example, which has a lot of weight at the European level,” Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said.
Speaking to Portuguese journalists after a dinner with Portuguese officials from the European Parliament, the Portuguese head of state said that “whether it is the prime minister, the state for European affairs or the representation in the embassy carries a lot of weight” at the community level.
Marcelo Rebelo de Souza answered a question about António Costa’s possible choice for the presidency of the European Council, the structure that unites the heads of state and government of the EU.
Describing the future leadership of the European Council as a “premature matter”, the President of the Republic considered that the choice of Charles Michel’s successor “depends on the results of the European elections” next June.
“This is a question that comes to the mind of various people who are here. […]if the composition of the parliament changes a lot or not, whether it is advisable to keep or not to leave the current leadership or to carry out a change,” but this will be related to “the result of the elections and the composition of the parliament, the weight of the various groups,” he pointed to Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
Also, when asked that he did not mention his disagreement with Prime Minister António Costa in his speech to the MEPs, when he addressed the then new domestic political cycle seven years ago, the head of state recalled that it was “an outdated invitation”, to address the plenary session now.
“He has a fundamental goal, which is for Portugal to speak about the future of Europe and in areas where Portugal does not speak, but few speak, such as the connection with Africa, with Latin America, […] migration problem […] and in terms of defining economic and financial rules,” he listed.
“This is the position of Portugal, this is the position of all Portuguese sovereign bodies, and in this we are all united, and I must even say that I have seen that there has been a great convergence of MEPs and the various benches” on these issues at the European level, he added. speaking on a “unique occasion” to respond to EU social and economic concerns about a year before European elections.
Another “European concern” that Marcelo Rebelo de Souza spoke about is the increase in interest rates.
The visit to Strasbourg came at a time of disagreement between the head of state and the Prime Minister of Portugal, António Costa, regarding the immutability of the Minister of Infrastructure, Joao Galamba, in the government.
Last Thursday, in an address to the country, the President of the Republic promised that he would be “even more attentive and more involved in daily life” to prevent conflict factors that degrade institutions and “avoid the use of powers.” exceptional”.
The head of state called his disagreement with the Prime Minister’s decision to keep Joao Galamba as Minister of Infrastructure “a fundamental difference” and considered that this decision by António Costa affects “the trust, reliability, authority of the minister, the government and the state.”