"I was fortunate that during my first term in office we were able to maintain at a very high level the relations of friendship and cooperation between our two countries, between Angola and Portugal, at all levels, including at a personal level, however, in this case of Portugal, the head of State is from a political family and the prime minister is from another", stated João Lourenço, in a virtual debate with Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, within the scope of the Euro-Africa Forum.
"This has by no means overshadowed the good relations that Portugal is managing to maintain with Angola and Angola with Portugal," he stressed.
For the head of state, in fact, the personal relations of political leaders helped to build a good level of relations between the two countries.
"Personal relationships also help. Therefore, over the years, we have known how to build that same relationship with President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and with Prime Minister António Costa," he stressed.
João Lourenço pointed out as an example that, in his opinion, portrays the good relations between the two countries, the help offered by the Portuguese Government so that Angola can reach the commitment it assumed with the Angolans to proceed with the exhumation of the bodies of the victims of the 27th of May 1977, a massacre carried out following an alleged coup attempt.
"I must say that in May of this year, we announced that we were going to start exhuming the remains of the victims of the 27th of May. And two or three days later the Prime Minister of Portugal called me to offer his services, of specialist technicians that Portugal has in this field, which was immediately accepted", said Lourenço.
"Therefore, a small episode to reflect the level of relations between our countries," he concluded.
The debate between the Portuguese and Angolan Presidents of the Republic, in digital format, was the high point of the 4th edition of the Euro-Africa Forum, which began on Wednesday and ended this Friday, in an initiative of the Portuguese Diaspora Council , chaired by António Calçada.
The Portuguese Diaspora Council is a Portuguese global network founded in 2012 and whose main objective is to enhance the brand, image and reputation of Portugal. It currently has 90 advisers, who work in different fields, from culture to economics, passing through citizenship and science.
These advisors are spread across 27 countries, 47 cities and five continents.
The debate focused on cooperation between Europe and Africa, and on economic relations between the two continents.
The forum's agenda included seven panels: Economic Perspectives for Europe and Africa after the Free Trade Agreement, Digital Work and Digital Platforms and Technologies, The Digital ID Revolution, Paving the Way for Green Growth and Inclusive Transitions, Culture and Market, and Media and Digitization.
Among the speakers were businessmen, activists, leaders, public and private decision makers, and other actors who contributed to the dialogue between Africa and Europe.
