Prime Minister indicates Portugal’s priorities for the European Council

The Portuguese Prime Minister claimed in Parliament that the upcoming European Council will be held "in a particularly trying context", stressing that the matters on the agenda are "decisive issues", focusing on "the European economy’s competitiveness" and the discussion over the next multiannual framework.

Support for Ukraine and pressure on Russia

On an international level, Luís Montenegro advocated the "need to reaffirm continuous support for the Ukrainian cause", assuming that this will be Portugal’s position, namely to "overcome the current deadlock with regard to financial support". The Prime Minister further reiterated that "this is not the time to relieve pressure on Russia".

Energy and the impact of the conflict in the Middle East

Concerning the Middle East, he alerted to an escalation of the conflict "bringing consequences on a global level" and "economic repercussions", particularly in the energy sector. Although Portugal has "a relatively high level of Independence regarding energy supply", he acknowledged that the country "is highly exposed to oil and gas prices", advocating that the national measures "will be more effective if the Union is able to articulate a coherent and sustainable response".

In this sense, he noted the need to "preserve the energy markets’ stability", as well as boosting investment in renewable energy" and "increasing the interconnection grids" to ensure greater autonomy and lesser dependence on fossil fuels.

Competitiveness and decisions in the European Council

On an economic level, the Prime Minister considered that "the discussion to boost our competitiveness gains even greater relevance" alerting to the risks that the European economies face and upholding the urgency to act: "we need to be effectively swift in executing our transformation programmes". He also expressed the conviction that thi Council could be "decisive" if "schedules" are set and "decisions that are not to be delayed" are taken".

Among the priorities, the indicated the "reduction of the regulatory complexity", combining "transparency and simplification" and the conclusion of the internal market, including "the savings and investment union" and the "energy union".

Cohesion as a prerequisite for competitiveness

The connection between competitiveness and cohesion was also stressed, with the Prime Minister claiming that "there cannot be competitiveness in Europe unless we guarantee cohesion": He therefore advocated maintaining a cohesion policy, "valuing and acknowledging the specific nature of the ultraperipheral regions" and "the need to leave no one behind".

His speech also included a reference to "multilateralism" and the meeting with the Secretary-General of the United Nations under the framework of the European Council works.