Luís Montenegro attended the recent Climate Conference, COP 30, held in Belém, Brazil, and then traveled to Colombia for the inauguration of a meeting notable for the absence of key figures such as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and French President Emmanuel Macron.
This summit will be co-chaired by Colombian President Gustavo Petro and European Council President António Costa in Santa Marta, located on the country’s Caribbean coast, more than 700 km from Bogotá, celebrating 500 years since its founding.
In von der Leyen’s absence, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, will attend.
The summit will commence with an official photograph of the attending heads of state and government and a cultural moment, with the opening session beginning at 10:00 (15:00 in Lisbon), featuring initial speeches from the President of Colombia and the European Council President, along with the President of Uruguay and the Prime Minister of Jamaica.
The day’s plenary session will proceed with addresses from the represented countries’ heads of state and government, concluding with a press meeting by Luís Montenegro with the Portuguese media.
On the second and final day of the EU-CELAC summit, a final press conference will be held by the President of Colombia and the European Council President.
The summit takes place amid escalating diplomatic tensions between Bogotá, Venezuela, and Washington, after the United States sank several vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific months ago, allegedly involved in drug trafficking, causing over 60 deaths.
With over one billion people, the 33 CELAC countries and the 27 EU member states collectively represent 14% of the global population, 21% of the world’s GDP, and a third of UN members.
A Portuguese government source considers the meeting “essential for strengthening the European Union’s relations with Latin America and the Caribbean, both politically and economically.”
“Portugal views the EU-CELAC partnership as a strategic alliance with enormous economic and commercial potential, but also shared values: democracy, human rights, social justice, environmental sustainability, and openness to the world,” the source stated.
Economically, the Portuguese Prime Minister has advocated for the swift implementation of the EU-Mercosur agreement, amid reports that its approval by the European Council is imminent.
In Belém, following a bilateral meeting with Brazilian President Lula da Silva, Luís Montenegro expressed hope that this trade agreement will be implemented “once and for all” by December.
The Portuguese government has also stressed the importance of initiatives such as the “Global Gateway,” in which the country has participated in Costa Rica and Brazil.
The “Global Gateway” initiative is the EU’s strategy to promote smart, clean, and secure links in digital, energy, and transport sectors, and to strengthen health, education, and research systems worldwide, mobilizing over 306 billion euros in investments from 2021 to 2024.
For 2025, the EU has allocated approximately 120 million euros in humanitarian aid for countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
