The Portuguese Prime Minister, António Costa, today in Lisbon highlighted the relevance of the mobility of citizens within the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), which he considered to be the most important aspect of all.
“When we celebrate 25 years of existence, this community has proved over these 25 years a great capacity for cooperation at international political level in the most diverse forums. It has shown great economic vitality through the companies from our different countries. But it is very important that the most important dynamic of all in our community, which is the one that exists between our people, has a very important milestone here”, he underlined.
For António Costa, who was speaking at the ceremony to hand over to the Executive Secretary of the CPLP, Zacarias da Costa, the instrument of ratification by Portugal of the Agreement on Mobility between member states of the organisation, “this is not just another agreement”, but rather “a very important act of political affirmation”.
To prove the political importance that this agreement represents for Portugal, António Costa said that it is not usual for the Prime Minister “to personally deposit the letter of ratification of an international agreement”, but this, he stressed, “is not a usual agreement either”.
“My presence here, accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs [Augusto Santos Silva] and the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation [Francisco André], demonstrates the high political importance that Portugal attaches to the conclusion of this mobility agreement,” he stressed.
