Felipe VI and Sánchez welcome António José Seguro on his first trip abroad as President of Portugal

The Diplomat King Felipe VI and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez welcomed Portuguese President António José Seguro to Madrid on Monday for his official visit to Spain. This is the first official trip abroad for the new Portuguese leader since taking office on March 9. The official day began at the Royal Palace in Madrid, where Seguro, accompanied by the First Lady, Margarida Maldonado, was received by the King. Among those attending the meeting were, on the Spanish side, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares Bueno; the Chief of Staff to His Majesty the King, Camilo Villarino; and the Spanish Ambassador to Lisbon, Juan Fernández Trigo. On the Portuguese side, Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel and Ambassador to Spain José Augusto Duarte were present. After the meeting between the delegations of both countries, the King and Queen hosted a luncheon in honor of the President of Portugal and his wife. In the early afternoon, the Portuguese president was received by the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, with whom he discussed the state of bilateral relations and “the shared defense of democratic principles in the face of global challenges,” according to a press release from Moncloa Palace. During the meeting, held at the Moncloa Palace, the Prime Minister expressed “his confidence in continuing to deepen economic cooperation between Spain and Portugal with the aim of promoting common interests and generating benefits for the economies of both countries.” He cited as examples of the strong bilateral understanding the recent bilateral summit held in Huelva, collaboration in fighting wildfires, and joint preparations for the 2030 FIFA World Cup. The previous day, President António José Seguro met with young Portuguese people working and studying in Spain at the residence of the Portuguese Embassy in Madrid. During this meeting, Seguro assured the press that the choice of Spain as the destination for his first trip was not “accidental,” but rather part of his desire to “consolidate” relations between two “neighboring” countries and strengthen bilateral cooperation “in multilateral forums,” particularly within the European Union. “Although, just between us, I would very much like to see Portuguese companies have a greater presence in the Spanish economy and market,” he stated to his compatriots residing in Spain. “This is one of the reasons for our presence here, for these high-level meetings with His Majesty the King of Spain and with the Spanish Prime Minister,” he added. Seguro's visit took place a month and a half after the 36th Spanish-Portuguese Summit, held at the La Rábida Monastery in Palos de la Frontera (Huelva), at the end of which the two governments adopted a joint declaration focused on six elements: energy and ecological transition; a sustainable and competitive economy within the framework of the fight against climate change; Digital transformation, artificial intelligence and digital infrastructures from a sustainable perspective; adaptation and management of crises related to the environment and climate change; food security, agriculture and fishing; and biodiversity and forest management. King Felipe VI attended the inauguration of António José Seguro on March 9th. In his inaugural address, Seguro expressly thanked the Spanish monarch for his presence at the ceremony, which he said revealed the “deep friendship, closeness, and cooperation that unite Portugal and Spain.” “Your presence honors us and reinforces the foundations of deep friendship, closeness, and cooperation that unite Portugal and Spain,” Seguro stated in his speech. “I know that we both prefer roads to borders, the synergies that unite territories, unite people, and transform our proximity into a relationship of friendship and cooperation,” he continued. “The relationship between Portugal and Spain has demonstrated that it is possible to build lasting convergences when the desire for a shared destiny prevails, a desire that I renew here on behalf of Portugal,” he added. Born in 1962 and a former deputy prime minister under António Guterres (current UN Secretary-General), the socialist António José Seguro succeeds the conservative Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who left the Portuguese presidency after ten years and whom King Felipe VI received in Madrid on February 20, during his last official visit to Spain before leaving office. On February 8, Seguro won a resounding victory in the second round of the presidential elections against the far-right candidate André Ventura. This is the most decisive result achieved to date by a candidate in a Portuguese presidential election, surpassing the 70 percent of the vote won by fellow socialist Mário Soares in the 1991 elections.

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