The Chinese vice-president arrived in Lisbon this Sunday to evaluate the relations between the two countries. He will probably be satisfied with what he sees, but he will want more. The visit will last four days.
China has been the fourth largest foreign direct investor in Portugal for several years, with a global position valued at 11.2 billion euros at the end of 2022, according to the Bank of Portugal (BdP).
The Asian giant, the world’s second-largest economy after the United States, remains the fourth-largest seller of goods to Portugal, having overtaken the Netherlands last year in that ranking. And it wants to gain weight in exports.
Tourism will be one of the major levers of a plan that aims to reach “one million Chinese tourists” per year within four years, according to the Chinese Tourism Association in Portugal, which met less than a month ago with the Secretary of State for Tourism, Nuno Fazenda.
The Vice President of the People’s Republic of China, Han Zheng, arrives today (Sunday 7 May) in Portugal for a four-day visit.
On the agenda, of course, is the deepening of economic relations between the two countries, which, although deep, have been affected in recent years by significant difficulties. The idea is more than to overcome these failures.
First, the pandemic, which slowed down the economies and the expansion of trade. Then, more recently, in 2022, by Russia’s war with Ukraine.
China is a historical ally of Russia and has been heavily criticized for not taking a firmer stance against the Kremlin. But even this atmosphere seems to be lightening somewhat.
Recently, European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen visited China and met with the country’s president, Xi Jinping. She was accompanied by the French president, Emmanuel Macron. They came back more enthusiastic.
