On the first day of his official visit to China, Luís Montenegro made these statements at the beginning of the meeting with the President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, from which journalists were only allowed to record the first three minutes.
“I cannot but, on behalf of the Government of Portugal, convey to you Mr. President that we greatly rely on your contribution and the close relationship that China maintains with the Russian Federation, so that we can, as quickly as possible, build a just and lasting peace in Ukraine,” he stated.
Moments later, the media were asked to leave the room.
Earlier, Montenegro emphasized that, in the international context, Portugal and China have “on many occasions maintained a basis of cooperation and shared values.”
“China plays a fundamental role on the global and international stage, being a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, and we expect your contribution to building bridges between peoples, bringing closer some of those in conflict, promoting peace, promoting multilateralism, promoting respect for human rights,” he said.
In the meeting, Luís Montenegro began by stating that “it is with great pleasure” that he makes this official visit to China, after brief statements from the Chinese President, Xi Jinping.
“As you, Mr. President, stated, Portugal and China have a relationship founded on a shared history with several moments in common, but also a relationship looking towards the future. I remember well your visit to Portugal seven years ago, and I would also like to convey the regards of the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa,” he said.
The Portuguese Prime Minister expressed agreement with Xi Jinping’s remarks on the transition of Macau’s administration from Portugal to China in 1999.
“In the Macau transition, we had a good expression of how we managed to converge and ensure the cultural identity and relationship between the Macau Special Administrative Region, with Portugal and with China,” he said.
Luís Montenegro arrived in Beijing early Monday afternoon, a moment closed to the media but with images shared on the Prime Minister’s social media channels, and had no public agenda that day.
The official schedule of the Prime Minister began this morning with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Monument to the People’s Heroes in Tiananmen Square, where he was accompanied by his wife and the three ministers participating in the visit: Paulo Rangel, Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, Manuel Castro Almeida, Minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion, and Graça Carvalho, Minister of Environment and Energy.
This event, which could only be covered on the ground by a photojournalist and a cameraman, featured the national anthems of Portugal and China.
Besides the meeting with the President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, Montenegro also met earlier with the president of the National People’s Congress of China, Zhao Leji.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Portuguese Prime Minister will have a working meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Li Qiang, also at the Great Hall of the People, before proceeding to the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR), where he has an agenda on Wednesday morning.
On Thursday and Friday, Montenegro will make an official visit to Japan, with stops in Tokyo and Osaka.
