Presidential visit to Portugal postponed
Bern, 17.10.2017 - In light of the devastating forest fires in Portugal and the subsequent declaration of three days of national mourning, Switzerland and Portugal have agreed to postpone President Leuthard’s visit to Lisbon scheduled for Thursday and Friday of this week. During a telephone conversation with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on Tuesday, Ms Leuthard expressed her deepest sympathies for the victims of the disaster and assured Portugal of Switzerland’s solidarity.
Both sides stressed their intention to renew contacts at the highest level of protocol at a later date. President Rebelo de Sousa paid a state visit to Switzerland in October 2016. Switzerland and Portugal have enjoyed longstanding friendly relations. The two countries also enjoy strong ties due to the large community of around 270,000 Portuguese nationals living in Switzerland. There are currently around 3,700 Swiss nationals living in Portugal.
Address for enquiries
Communication DETEC, +41 58 462 55 11
Publisher
General Secretariat of the Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications; General Secretariat DETEC
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