East Timor. Prime Minister wishes to deepen relations with "brother country"

The Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, noted today the ties of friendship and cooperation between Portugal and East Timor - "a brother people, a brother country" – making clear the Portuguese Government’s willingness to continue to deepen relations between both countries.

 "It is our intention to keep deepening, from the perspective of cooperation in the field of culture, language, education, economic [cooperation] the relations between our peoples and our countries", claimed the Prime Minister in a speech following the meeting with the President of East Timor José Ramos Horta in São Bento. Luís Montenegro recalled that both countries share "common values, the value of peace, democracy, and human rights" and stressed the economic scale, drawing on the opportunities that East Timor’s geostrategic location can offer Portuguese companies.  

This was a point also stressed by José Ramos Horta, who recalled that East Timor is now a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and that in 2025 it will become a member of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), "a political, economic, and cultural community with 700 million people", which can also be an opportunity for Portugal, the Timor Head of State emphasised. "Due to our friendship with Portugal, but also our historical ties, our language ties, and also our common interests, I would like to see a greater economic dimension in the relations between East Timor and the CPLP [Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries], as well as between East Timor and Portugal", noted José Ramos Horta.