Luís Montenegro has scheduled meetings with the head of the government of the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR), a visit to the Portuguese School and the General Consulate, as well as a walk through the city’s downtown and a reception for the Portuguese community at the official residence of the consul-general of Hong Kong and Macau, Alexandre Leitão.
The head of the Government, who is on the second day of an official visit to China, including a stop in Macau, and Japan, stated on Tuesday in Beijing that Portugal is exploring opportunities presented by the world’s second-largest economy in various domains and aims to involve Macau in the deepening of this economic relationship.
“Renewable energies, electric vehicles, batteries, energy storage, technologies associated with 5G and artificial intelligence are areas where Portugal should collaborate and take advantage of having Macau as a bridge,” he emphasized.
The agenda of the talks between Montenegro and Sam Ho Fai has not been disclosed. The Portuguese head of Government is expected to hold a press conference in the mid-afternoon, before departing for Tokyo, where he is anticipated to disclose key points from the meeting with Sam Ho Fai.
Nonetheless, Montenegro stated on Tuesday that “the way the transition [of Macau’s administration to China] was carried out and how we have managed to ensure, despite some challenges, the preservation of our cultural and historical values in the territory, while contributing so that now, with this special administrative regime, Macau citizens can access development indices that are also an appeal and a wish of the Portuguese government,” he said to journalists in Beijing.
Montenegro was received on Tuesday in Beijing by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang, and traveled in the evening to Macau, from where he will depart this afternoon for Japan, with visits planned to Tokyo and Osaka on Thursday and Friday.
