Luanda — Portugal's Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, Paulo Rangel, on Saturday in Luanda, highlighted the spirit of reconciliation between the Angolan and Portuguese peoples, due to the fact that Angola honors Portuguese soldiers by requalifying their graves.
The government official expressed this fact, in statements to the press, after visiting, at the Sant'Ana Cemetery, the work to requalify the graves of more than 450 Portuguese soldiers who fell in Angola.
Paulo Rangel said that the remains of other soldiers, buried in other parts of the country, could be transferred in the future to this space under rehabilitation.
For this reason, he stressed that the fact that the Government of Angola gives dignified treatment to Portuguese soldiers is a demonstration of the ability, willingness and generosity to reconcile with the history that still lingers in the memory of many Angolans.
As a result, the Minister of State and Foreign Affairs of Portugal expressed the gratitude of the Portuguese people to the Angolan population, for allowing and supporting the efforts to improve the plots.
"And it is not coincidence that Angola today is seen in the international community as a great promoter of peace, for being capable of gestures like these", he asserted.
He stated that the honored soldiers fulfilled their responsibility and gave their lives for their country, considering the conflict that involved the two countries as an "unjust war".
And, he recalled, this gesture by the Angolan authorities falls within the scope of the 50th anniversary of the 25th of April and the 50th anniversary of Angola's Independence and it will be in this cycle that this work will be completed.
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Paulo Rangel returns to Portugal today, Saturday, after making a two-day visit to Angola with the aim of preparing the visit of the Portuguese Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, scheduled for the 23rd and 25th of July.
Cooperation
Angola and Portugal established diplomatic relations in March 1976, following the declaration of Angola's independence on 11 November 1975.
Two years later, in 1978, the two States signed the General Cooperation Agreement, from which date bilateral relations intensified and several other legal cooperation instruments were signed in the most diverse areas.
The Portuguese-Angolan relationship is characterized by political dialogue and regular high-level visits, thus demonstrating the common desire to deepen the relationship between the two States, with mutual benefits for their people. AMC/ART/DOJ
