Paris, July 2, 2026 (Lusa) - The Portuguese president has said that bilateral relations with France are at a “very positive” stage, including at an economic level, and called for an increase in Portuguese exports to France.
Speaking to journalists at the end of a brief visit to Paris on Wednesday, where he had a working lunch with the French President, Emmanuel Macron, António José Seguro said that the day had been “very positive for relations between Portugal and France and also for the Portuguese economy”.
“The working meeting [with Macron] could not have gone better. This is a good moment in relations between Portugal and France, and that was reinforced during and at the end of the meeting,” he said.
The president emphasised that he had reviewed with Emmanuel Macron the “various areas of cooperation” between Portugal and France, “particularly in economic, cultural and energy terms”.
“And the French President clearly expressed his desire to hold, ideally by the end of the year, the first summit between the two nations, as provided for in the friendship treaty signed last year, with priority already being given to teaching of Portuguese and French,” he announced.
On the foreign policy front, Seguro noted that Portugal shares “common values” with France, particularly with regard to the defence of multilateralism, “the peaceful resolution of conflicts, and respect for international law and the United Nations Charter”.
The Portuguese Head of State noted that this convergence was evident during discussions on current “global crises”, notably the war in Ukraine, the need for free passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and the need to “find peaceful solutions in the Middle East”.
“Naturally, this requires an agreement between the United States and Iran, it requires peace in Lebanon as well, and it also requires a closer focus on peaceful solutions and respect for human rights in Gaza,” he argued.
With regard to coordination at European Union (EU) level, Seguro said there was also a “broad convergence of views” on the need for the bloc to deepen its strategic autonomy.
The president therefore considered that the meeting with Macron had been “very, very productive, and this also translates into a favourable investment climate”.
Prior to these remarks to journalists, during a meeting with Portuguese business leaders at the Portuguese Embassy in Paris, António José Seguro reiterated that relations between the two nations are “at a good, very positive stage”.
Addressing the business leaders, António José Seguro said he was “proud of what they are doing” and argued that the country needs to increase its exports to France.
“It is very important that we increase our exports to France; that is a very clear objective,” he insisted in his remarks to journalists.
Asked whether, during his meeting with Macron, he had also discussed relations with African countries, Seguro said that this had been a topic of discussion at the meeting and that there is also “a shared understanding and common ground on what needs to be done” in this regard.
“I myself will be welcoming the President of Mozambique to Lisbon later this July, as he is coming to take part in a very important meeting on cooperation with Africa, and I will be making my first visit to Africa, starting precisely with Cabo Verde, at the end of this month,” he said.
Asked whether the discussion had also included a request for Macron to try to mediate to ease tensions between Portugal and Guinea-Bissau, Seguro replied that African issues, including Guinea-Bissau, had been addressed at the meeting.
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