Briefs | Portuguese president to visit Macau in early 2019

The President of the Portuguese Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, will be visiting China and Macau in the first quarter of 2019, sources told the Times. The visit to China will follow Chinese President Xi Jinping’s own visit to Lisbon, Portugal, on December 4 and 5. During a recent stay in Macau, Portuguese Foreign Affairs Minister Augusto Santos Silva said that the President of the Portuguese Republic would return the favor soon. Contacted yesterday by the Times, Paulo Magalhães, the press adviser of the Portuguese head of State, said that “no precise date has been set yet for the visit of the President of the Republic to China.”

Chinese ambassador praises Macau’s platform role

The Chinese Ambassador to Portugal, Cai Run, has praised Macau’s function as a platform on which China and Portugal can connect. During a meeting with a delegation of business associations and young entrepreneurs from Macau, the ambassador said Macau’s unique status can provide a good foundation for the development of Sino-Portuguese relations. Next year will mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Portugal. Cai expressed his hope that Macau can utilize its status as a bridge between the two countries and help Portugal play a more active role in China’s state strategy.