Brussels, Sept. 16, 2024 (Lusa) - Portugal's new ambassador to the European Union has argued in an interview with the Lusa news agency that the soon-to-be president of the European Council, António Costa, who was Portugal's prime minister until April, has the "best characteristics" to build bridges between EU leaders, while also understanding Portuguese "sensitivities" on key issues.
"António Costa has the best and most necessary characteristics to be an excellent president of the European Council and to be able to build bridges" between EU leaders, said Pedro Costa Pereira in an interview with Lusa in Brussels.
The ambassador, who has headed the Permanent Representation of Portugal to the European Union (REPER) for just over two weeks, notes that although Costa's focus will shift to Europe when he takes office in December, "a Portuguese is able to better understand Portuguese sensitivities and interests" and that this represents "added value" for the country.
He recalled that "the Portuguese government made a strong commitment to his candidacy" because having a Portuguese national at the head of an EU institution such as the one made up of the 27 heads of government and state "is a source of national pride" - as was the case with José Manuel Durão Barroso, another former prime minister, when he was president of the European Commission, or António Guterres, who was the prime minister before that, and who remains secretary-general of the United Nations.
"Of course, for us it's always a great added value to have someone who understands our sensitivities, but what's really important for us is that... the European Union works well and, for that to happen, the role of the president of the European Council in facilitating compromises in decision-making is absolutely essential," emphasised Costa Pereira.
The new REPER head added that Costa's role will be precisely to "seek the right balance in decision-making, so that the European interest is well served."
Last June, Costa was elected president of the European Council by the EU's heads of state and government for a two-and-a-half year term to begin on 1 December 2024.
Costa will be the first Portuguese and also the first Socialist to head the European Council. He succeeds Charles Michel of Belgium, who has been in office since 2019.
At the age of 61, Costa Pereira has been Portugal's ambassador to the EU since the end of August.
He succeeds Pedro Lourtie, who left to become Costa's chief of staff at the European Council.
Before heading up Portugal's Permanent Representation to the European Union, Costa Pereira served as its ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a post he had held since 2019.
Before that, he held positions such as advisor to then prime minister Durão Barroso on European affairs and deputy permanent representative at REPER, among others in the field of foreign affairs.
In this interview with Lusa, Costa Pereira also said that he wants to ensure an "active role" for REPER in combating the lack of sufficient Portuguese representation in the EU institutions, compared to the weight of officials from other countries - a problem that has been worsened by the retirement of some officials in top positions.
"It's a structural issue and the results can't be expected in the short term," the ambassador told Lusa, adding that it was important to work to “try to influence the occupation of these top positions and, at the same time and in coordination with Lisbon, invest in the preparation of people who intend to run for the European institutions.”
The number of officials from Portugal working in EU institutions such as the commission is estimated at 2%, compared to the "guiding rate" for the country of 3.1%, which is why it has been investing in publicising job vacancies, training and mobility.
ANE/ARO // ARO.
Lusa
