The President of Portugal affirms that the Government’s position is “changing” in relation to Palestine

June 11 () –

The president of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, stated this Monday that the position of the Portuguese Government is “changing” in relation to Palestine, although he has indicated that pro-Palestinian protesters want progress to be faster.

Upon his arrival in Coimbra for the celebrations for the 500th anniversary of the writer Luis de Camoes, he addressed the protesters who were on campus demanding recognition of the State of Palestine, an arms embargo on Israel and denouncing “ethnic cleansing.” ” in the Palestinian territories.

After stopping to listen to their messages, he asked to borrow the microphone and highlighted to them that “Portugal, for the first time, voted a little over a month ago in favor of Palestine becoming a full member of the UN” and that “has just signed, as well as other statements, one in favor of a ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip.

After this exchange, when journalists asked Rebelo de Sousa about the conversation with the students, he pointed out that Portugal’s position on Palestine “is changing and has already changed.” The protesters, for their part, want reality to “come further and faster,” he summarized, according to the Lusa news agency.

A few weeks ago, when the debate was created on the continent for the recognition of the State of Palestine in light of the decision of Spain, Ireland and Norway to do the same, the Portuguese president maintained that it was not yet “the time” and that when it was ” appropriate” that decision will be “made”, since “the Portuguese position is very clear” in defending “for a long time, in line with the United Nations, the existence of two peoples and two States”.

For his part, the Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, distanced himself from the position of these countries, arguing that for the moment they do not want to go that far and that they prefer that the step be taken multilaterally, within the framework of the EU or the UN. Meanwhile, the leader of the opposition, the socialist Pedro Nuno Santos, stated that they should “immediately” recognize the State of Palestine, considering that it would be an “important political signal” and a contribution to peace in the Middle East.

Most countries that have recognized Palestine are located in Africa, Asia and South America. However, this recognition has not allowed Palestine to become a full member of the UN, since it needs the approval of the UN Security Council. The last attempt to gain the support of the Security Council occurred on April 18, but was frustrated after the United States veto.