Portugal's prime minister makes first visit to Kyiv
Photo: Luís Montenegro (GettyImages)
Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro arrived in Kyiv on Saturday morning and has already met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according t0 Zelenskyy's Telegram post and RTP.
Until now, Montenegro had met Zelenskyy in person only twice. The first meeting took place on May 28, 2024, in Lisbon during Zelenskyy's official visit to Portugal, when the two sides signed a bilateral cooperation and security agreement. The second meeting took place on October 2 in Copenhagen, on the sidelines of an international summit, where further Portuguese support for Ukraine was discussed.
This current visit marks Montenegro’s first trip to Ukraine since taking office as prime minister. He arrived in Kyiv with Defense Minister Nuno Melo by overnight train at 8:13 a.m.
The visit program includes talks with Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Olha Svyrydenko, and Verkhovna Rada Chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk.
"More than any other country, Ukraine naturally needs our solidarity and closeness, not to mention our commitment; this is exactly what we bring," Montenegro said.
The Portuguese prime minister emphasized that Ukraine urgently requires financial support, noting that Portugal continues to provide aid both bilaterally and through various humanitarian, social, military, and political programs. He also highlighted the close ties between the communities of the two countries and the duty of governments to reflect their peoples’ solidarity.
Zelenskyy also shared a video showing him and Montenegro honoring the memory of fallen Ukrainian soldiers.
Earlier, we reported that in Portugal's early parliamentary elections, the ruling Democratic Alliance party likely came out on top. However, the party was unable to secure a majority needed to form a government independently.
