Ambassador João Mira Gomes receives President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa – Picture by Portuguese Presidency.
7-8 August, Berlin, Federal Republic of Germany: The President of the Portuguese Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, began on Wednesday an official visit to Berlin and Rostock, Mecklenburg West Pomerania, at the invitation of his German counterpart, Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier, to consolidate relations between the two EU partners.
According to the Portuguese Presidency: “this visit aims to consolidate the bilateral relations between Portugal and Germany, giving continuity to the level of excellence that characterises the relationship between the two countries in all dimensions, whether at institutional, academic, cultural, scientific and economic level”.
According to the programme, President Rebelo de Sousa participated on Wednesday in the inauguration of the exhibition “Between Imagination and Memory” by Paula Rego, the painter’s first solo exhibition in Germany, held at the Cultural Centre of the Portuguese Embassy in Berlin, followed by a reception for the Portuguese community, at the Residence of Portugal in Berlin, hosted by Ambassador João Mira Gomes.
On Thursday, Marcelo was received by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, at the Bellevue Palace, and held a brief meeting with students from Portuguese schools.
In the afternoon, they left for Rostock, in the northeast of Germany, wherein both heads of state partook in a ceremony in the city’s municipal council, which marked the new designation of ‘Hanseatic and University City of Rostock’, for the largest city in the state of Mecklenburg West-Pomerania. President Rebelo de Sousa was received according by the state’s premier, Manuela Schwesig and the City Mayor Roland Methling.
Upon the invitation of his German counterpart, the Portuguese president subsequently participates in the official opening ceremony of the Rostock Maritime Festival “Hanse Sail 2019”, which takes place annually in Rostock, partly bathed by the Baltic Sea. This year Latvia is the festival’s partner country.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa visited the Federal Republic of Germany in the first year of his term of office, from 29 to 30 May 2016, and had meetings in Berlin with the then German Head of State, Prof. Joachim Gauck, the then President of the Federal Parliament, Dr. Norbert Lammert, and Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel.
For further information:
Portuguese Presidency: http://www.presidencia.pt/?idc=10&idi=167933&fbclid=IwAR0zUL4fx8DwHCTjD7KHFCC0BAS-_FbRskAZsd040e5kmFEFiCCSmaCma7A
Hanse Sail 2019: https://www.hansesail.com
