Ver Angola

Politics

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa highlights Angola's turn over Russia and "greater sensitivity"

The President of the Portuguese Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, highlighted this Thursday the “very significant” change in Angola’s position on the war in Ukraine, admitting that there is “greater sensitivity” to European and North American points of view.

: Ampe Rogério/Lusa
Ampe Rogério/Lusa  

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa was speaking to journalists in Luanda, where this Thursday he participated in the inauguration ceremony of the President, João Lourenço, highlighting in his speech the change in Angola's orientation with regard to the war in Ukraine.

"Like several African countries, including Portuguese-speaking ones, Angola did not support the position of Ukraine and the European Union and in this speech, President João Lourenço invites the Russian Federation to stop its operations to allow the opening of negotiations, which is a very significant turning point”, he commented.

The President of the Republic defended this Thursday in his inauguration speech that Russia should take the initiative to end the conflict with Ukraine to avoid an escalation of the conflict and pave the way for the reform of the United Nations Security Council.

Certainly, suggested Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, "taking into account the new data on what is happening in Ukraine", but he also admitted that there will be "a greater sensitivity towards European and especially North American points of view in this matter".

Internally, João Lourenço's speech was made to meet the "immediate needs of the populations" and feeling a greater sense of urgency in his second term.

"They run much faster than the first ones", said the Portuguese President, considering that the latter "will be much faster", and that João Lourenço, with a heavy specifications "has to accelerate intervention on the ground and political intervention".

He also considered that this was a very different and richer speech than five years ago and pointed out the fact that there was also a military parade at this ceremony.

"There was clearly the announced concern to emphasize the role and value the Armed Forces, which appears both in the President's speech and in the simple fact that half of the ceremony is a parade", he considered.

The President promised this Thursday to promote the improvement of salaries and barracks conditions for the military "in the very first days" of his government, since the defense of sovereignty and public order "is sacred" for Angola.

Asked if he had bilateral meetings, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa confirmed that he had met African heads of state and multilateral organizations, namely the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries, with whom he also spoke about positions on the war in Ukraine.

On the other hand, walking through the streets of Luanda also made it possible to "confirm the great democratic maturity, diversity, pluralism and enormous sympathy for Portugal".

He also declared that he "followed the thinking of the opposition" recalling that tomorrow [Friday] the second elected body – National Assembly – where the various political forces are represented, takes office.

And he added: "It is evident that the Angolan people want this political process to be a peace process, with the functioning of institutions and within them".

Related

Permita anúncios no nosso site

×

Parece que está a utilizar um bloqueador de anúncios
Utilizamos a publicidade para podermos oferecer-lhe notícias diariamente.