Viana do Castelo, Portugal, March 17, 2026 (Lusa) - The Portuguese Communist Party's (PCP) parliamentary leader announced on Tuesday that the party has scheduled a debate with the government for 25 March on "general policy", focusing on the "escalation of prices as a result of the war in the Middle East on living conditions" in Portugal.

The leader of the Communist bench said that the war in Iran, "in addition to the tragic effects it is producing in the loss of human lives in the region, is destabilising the entire world economy".

"The effects in Portugal are being felt in the brutal increase in fuel prices, and if this war is not stopped immediately, the effects will be dramatic in terms of inflation, leading to an abrupt loss of purchasing power", she said.

Santos said the government needed to give a "firm response" to the current situation and that economic groups should be called upon to use their profits to address the conflict's consequences.

TS/LYT // ADB.

Lusa