By Fan Anqi (Global Times) September 10, 2025
Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on September 9, 2025. Photo: Xinhua
China and Portugal have achieved fruitful outcomes in cooperation across various fields in recent years, setting a model of mutual respect and mutual benefit for countries with different social systems and national conditions, Chinese President Xi Jinping told visiting Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro in Beijing during their meeting on Tuesday, the Xinhua News Agency reported.
Noting that this year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the China-Portugal comprehensive strategic partnership, Xi said China is willing to strengthen strategic communication with Portugal, steer the bilateral relations in the right direction, make the good relations even better, and contribute more to the prosperity and progress of the two countries and the world through solidarity and cooperation.
Xi called on the two sides to carry forward the traditional friendship, maintain mutual trust and support, deepen the alignment of development strategies, and expand practical cooperation in areas such as innovation, green development, maritime affairs and healthcare, per Xinhua.
He noted that the two sides should give full play to Macao’s unique role as a bridge and make good use of mechanisms like the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes at a higher level. They should also encourage exchanges in culture, education, tourism and scientific research, as well as deepen people-to-people and cultural exchanges, he added.
Noting this year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, as well as the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations (UN), Xi stressed that China is ready to work closely with Portugal in multilateral affairs to jointly practice true multilateralism, safeguard the authority of the UN and the free trade system, and promote the building of a more just and equitable global governance system.
Montenegro conveyed Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa’s sincere greetings to President Xi, adding that the future-oriented relations between Portugal and China have a long history, and the two countries have properly resolved the Macao issue through friendly consultations, according to Xinhua.
Montenegro said the successful practice in Macao over the past 25 years fully demonstrates that the Portuguese government made the right decision. Portugal will continue to adhere to the one-China policy and will not forget the valuable support and assistance provided by China during the most difficult period of Portugal’s economy, he said. Montenegro expressed Portugal’s willingness to deepen cooperation, enhance political mutual trust, and strengthen economic and trade ties with China.
Montenegro arrived in Beijing on Monday for his first official visit to China, which will run through Wednesday. On Tuesday, Montenegro laid a wreath at the Monument to the People’s Heroes on Tian’anmen Square in Beijing, Xinhua reported.
Cui Hongjian, director of the Department of European Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, noted that the prime minister’s tribute at the Monument to the People’s Heroes, even though he did not attend China’s V-Day commemorations, demonstrates that on the issue of jointly opposing fascism and in the area of upholding global governance, Portugal shares a consensus with China.
A source from the Prime Minister’s office contextualized Montenegro’s visit to China within Portugal’s “diplomatic tradition,” noting that all Heads of State and several prime ministers have visited China, the “second-largest global economy” and a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, according to media reports.
Portugal is an ancient maritime nation and served as the European starting point of the ancient Maritime Silk Road, as well as a vital hub connecting the land and maritime Silk Roads. It is a natural partner in jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative. Portugal was the first Western European country to sign a cooperation agreement with China on jointly building the Belt and Road, the first EU member state to formally establish a “blue partnership” with China, one of the founding members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and the first eurozone country to issue RMB bonds.
“Among European countries, China-Portugal relations stand out as uniquely special,” Zhao Junjie, a senior research fellow at the Institute of European Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday. “And Montenegro’s first official visit to China, coming right after China’s September 3 V-Day commemorations, carries even greater political significance. It underscores the high level of political mutual trust between China and Portugal, as well as their commitment to pragmatic cooperation,” Zhao said.
Over the years, cooperation between China and Portugal has deepened across various fields with increasing momentum. Under the framework of Belt and Road cooperation, the two sides have carried out mutually beneficial projects such as China-Europe freight trains. “In the current context where China-Europe relations face complexities, the steady development of China-Portugal ties sets a fine example for other European countries,” Zhao noted.
Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao met with Manuel Castro Almeida, Portuguese Minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion, in Beijing on Monday. During the meeting, Wang called on China and Portugal, as well as China and Europe, to firmly support the multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization at its core, and inject more stability and certainty into the world economy, as now the international economic and trade order and multilateral trade rules are facing severe challenges.
According to the central bank of Portugal, China’s foreign direct investment in Portugal reached $4.46 billion in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 9.32 percent. It has seen a 4.5-fold increase over the past decade, and 14 consecutive years of positive growth. Portugal ranks among the EU countries receiving the most Chinese investment per capita.
Steadying China-Europe ties
Despite some noises in the development of China-Europe relations and hype from Western media, China and Europe have maintained frequent exchanges this year. In April, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited China, followed by President of the European Council António Costa and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen in July who were in Beijing for the 25th China-EU Summit. Additionally, foreign ministers of a number of European countries including Portugal, France, Denmark, Netherlands and Croatia paid visits to China this year.
On China-Europe relations, Xi said, “the more turbulent the international landscape becomes, the greater the need for China and Europe to strengthen communication, enhance mutual trust and deepen cooperation,” while expressing the hope that Portugal will work with China to uphold the orientation of the China-EU partnership and promote the sustained, stable and healthy development of China-EU relations, Xinhua reported.
The Portuguese prime minister said China is an indispensable partner for Europe, and Portugal is ready to play a positive role in promoting the healthy and stable development of EU-China relations.
Jiang Feng, a research fellow at Shanghai International Studies University and president of the Shanghai Association of Regional and Country Studies, believes China-Portugal relations play a stabilizing and enhancing role in China-Europe relations. “Especially in the current complex environment, this role can effectively enhance confidence and stimulate cooperative vitality, making its importance increasingly prominent,” Jiang told the Global Times on Tuesday.
During the meeting with Xi, Montenegro acknowledged the “vital role” China plays in international affairs. He added that Portugal agrees with the important concepts embodied in the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) proposed by President Xi and is willing to jointly uphold multilateralism with the Chinese side. Portugal welcomes China’s greater contributions to improving the global governance system, Xinhua reported.
“In the current global landscape, where the threat of climate change is growing more severe and unilateralism and bullying tactics are on the rise, European countries aspire to actively engage in global governance processes to ensure their concerns are given due attention and respect by the international community,” Zhao said.
