The Secretary-General of the Socialist Party, José Luís Carneiro, expressed confidence today that Luís Montenegro’s government will ultimately realize the necessity of engaging with the PS on defense matters.
“I am convinced that the government will be brought to the conclusion that it indeed must dialogue with the PS,” stated José Luís Carneiro following a visit to INOVGAIA – Base Incubation Center in Vila Nova de Gaia, Porto district.
Accompanied by João Paulo Correia, the PS candidate for the Vila Nova de Gaia City Council, the PS Secretary-General noted that many other sectors of society, economics, business, and institutions will also persuade the government to engage in dialogue with the PS.
On Friday, the PS Secretary-General sent a letter to Luís Montenegro, challenging him to negotiate with the socialists a proposal for a “Strategic Agreement for a National Development and Defense Capacity Plan” with a three-month deadline.
“What the letter states is that we in the PS are available to work together, inviting personalities from the national scientific system, individuals with experience in the Ministry of National Defense, the economy, industry, training, education, science, and knowledge to sit at the same table and build a development plan that corresponds, on one hand, to the capacity building of society, the state, the economy, and, at the same time, to absorb skilled labor,” he explained.
The socialist reiterated that he is calling the government to collaborate on a plan that must contribute to the development of the economy, the country’s infrastructure, job creation, particularly qualified employment, and the growth of the national scientific system.
“We must seize the opportunity over the next 10 to 15 years to invest in national defense alongside the European effort to invest in defense, ensuring that such investment translates into the economic and social development of the country,” he noted.
José Luís Carneiro also mentioned he was not surprised by the announcement of the increase in Defense investment to 2% of GDP this year.
“In fact, it was the commitment we made with the Prime Minister to match the 2% GDP effort by 2025. We were surprised by the assumption of 3.5%,” he noted.
