José Luís Carneiro returned to Lisbon today after meetings in Angola with the head of state, João Lourenço, the ruling party (MPLA), and engagements with civil society, the Portuguese community, and business figures.
The Secretary-General of the PS noted that Angolan authorities expressed bewilderment over Portugal’s intent to amend nationality laws without prior political dialogue regarding the objectives of the proposed changes.
“The amendment to the foreign law, particularly concerning family reunification and access to justice, caused perplexity among many social, business, and political sectors in Angola,” stated José Luís Carneiro.
The changes to the nationality law proposed by the Portuguese government are set for discussion in October, with the PS open to incorporating improvements into the legislation.
“It is crucial to ensure that privileged relations with Portuguese-speaking countries, which are the guiding lines of Portuguese foreign policy, are maintained,” he declared.
Following his contacts in Angola, José Luís Carneiro revealed plans for similar meetings in September with other capitals of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), currently establishing unspecified contacts.
The PS aims to continue these engagements to update the political agenda with Portuguese-speaking countries, emphasizing the nationality issue as a “sensitive” subject, according to José Luís Carneiro.
The socialist leader stressed that the nationality issue is closely linked to the principle of reciprocity, particularly concerning the treatment of Portuguese citizens residing in CPLP countries.
According to the PS, 130,000 Portuguese live in Angola, with 60% holding dual nationality: Portuguese and Angolan.
Moreover, José Luís Carneiro remarked that there are 2,000 Portuguese companies operating in Angola and 5,000 Portuguese exporters conducting business with the country.
In this regard, José Luís Carneiro emphasized that relations should continue smoothly, maintaining contacts that should not be “undermined.”
On the recent statements by Luís Montenegro’s government claiming no preferred parties for negotiating the upcoming State Budget, José Luís Carneiro viewed this as a baseless statement.
“Indeed, the government has had a preferential partner. The government reached an agreement on the Foreigners Law with Chega and established an agreement on the IRS (…) We will now see if this agreement is structural or lasting or if it was a shift that can be redirected.”
