The Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, participated in the special program ‘Nova Defesa’ on SIC Notícias this Monday.
During his address, Montenegro emphasized that investment in defense was a priority, acknowledging questions regarding this direction.
“It wasn’t little, but we are not only talking about our responsibility to defend our values and commitments as an EU member state and a founding member of the Atlantic Alliance,” he stated, arguing that this investment was not “just” a contribution to enable the Armed Forces to respond to any major threats or conflicts.
We are truly talking about ensuring freedom, the fundamental rights of citizens, and the country’s economic development
“We are not merely equipping our forces for international missions alone”, he noted, asserting: “We are truly talking about well-being. We are indeed discussing ensuring freedom, the fundamental rights of citizens, and the economic development of the country.”
Recalling conflicts around the world, Montenegro noted that in all of them, the fundamental rights of many people are challenged and “many lives are lost.” Despite these external conflicts, the head of the executive stated: “We are also at war in Portugal. We are at war at our doors and within our country. Every day, our public and private institutions are targeted.”
Discussing cyberspace, Montenegro highlighted that there are threats here which, “if they achieve their objectives”, pose “significant difficulties in wealth creation.”
Legislative Changes and New Airport
During his speech, the Prime Minister announced that the government plans to introduce legislative changes to “accelerate procedures” in the Defense sector, warning that the country “is also at war” and vulnerable to cyber attacks on public and private institutions.
“We deliberately included investment in the Defense sector as an element of the ongoing administrative reform. Here, we also want a more efficient state that resolves issues faster. For this reason, we will soon present a set of legislative changes that will be relevant for speeding up procedures,” announced Luís Montenegro.
Emphasizing that states “are the clients of military products,” Montenegro indicated that Portugal is pursuing an integrated strategy within the context of the European Union and NATO.
“We must have operational and procurement rules that fit this. We cannot, as happens today, reach the end of a procurement procedure for certain military equipment and purchase from our enemies instead of our partners. That is literally absurd,” he warned.
At the last NATO summit in June in the Netherlands, Atlantic Alliance members committed to investing 5% of GDP by 2035 in military expenditures, with 3.5% for defense-related expenses and an additional 1.5% for investments like infrastructure and industry.
When asked whether the new Lisbon airport or the third Tagus crossing might be included in this effort, Luís Montenegro replied with a question: “Does anyone doubt they have a dimension in our security capacity, our resilience? Of course, they do.”
The head of the government stressed that the government does not want “to exceed reasonable limits,” but Portugal will not “refrain from doing what others do.”
“My sense – we are currently assessing this in various government areas – is that we have not yet reached the limit of what is possible, even today, to include in the repercussions that many investments can have in the Defense sector, especially in the future. Does anyone doubt that the new Lisbon airport has that capacity? I don’t think so,” he noted.
Regarding the component that will be counted towards this effort, Montenegro pointed to future “technical discussions” with NATO.
[News updated at 9:41 PM]
