PS questions Guimarães mayor meeting with Israeli ambassador

Nthe answer, Ricardo Araújo said that he meets with all ambassadors accredited in Portugal and that the dimension of international politics is the state.

“Meeting with Israel’s ambassador and discussing technology, artificial intelligence, civil protection, industry or investment without addressing the humanitarian situation in Gaza and respect for international law would be as incomprehensible as meeting institutionally with the Russian Federation ambassador and talking about economic cooperation without questioning the invasion of Ukraine,” said the Socialists, in an open letter addressed to the mayor of Guimarães, Ricardo Araújo (PSD).

They admit that “diplomacy requires dialogue”, but stress that “institutional dialogue cannot mean silence in the face of issues that challenge democratic conscience and fundamental principles” they defend.

They therefore ask whether, during the meeting, the mayor of Guimarães confronted the diplomatic representative of Israel “with the growing international isolation of that state and the profound change that has taken place in Portuguese public opinion in the face of the scale of the destruction, suffering and loss of civilian lives caused by the conflict in Gaza”.

“ This is not a side issue, nor can it be ignored in such a meeting. On the contrary, it is inevitably underlying any institutional contact with representatives of the State of Israel in the current international context”, reads in the open letter.

In the answer, Ricardo Araújo said he will continue to receive ambassadors from countries with whom Portugal has diplomatic relations and which are accredited in Portugal.

“ These are diplomatic, institutional relations (...). The mayor of Guimarães, as a representative of the vimarans, knows well to welcome all those who visit us ", said.

He added that, beyond that, “there is a dimension of international policy that falls within the competence of the State at the central level”.

“It’s not my place to interfere,” he said.

He said that he has his opinion “on any subject, but that is not what is at stake here”.

“There is an institutional relationship of the mayor, who naturally receives ambassadors who are accredited to Portugal, because if they are accredited to Portugal means they have diplomatic relations and have the right to be recognized institutionally. And, therefore, at this level the mayor also fulfills, if you want, this responsibility”, he said.

He recalled that this month he received ambassadors from 13 countries, including Israel, “on a ride” from the solemn investiture session of new members of the Diplomacy Academy, which took place in Guimarães, in Braga district.

“ This was very important because it allowed Guimarães to become visible, allowed us to discuss and discuss the possibility of creating new bridges with these countries, the possibility of creating new twinnings with some of these countries and, in essence, strengthening this cooperation of Guimarães with this international network, of designing Guimarães, of attracting more tourists, more visitors. In the background, put Guimarães at the top of the national and international agenda ", said Ricardo Araújo.

In a note published on Facebook, the municipality states that the meeting allowed exploring new possibilities of collaboration in strategic areas for the development of the territory, such as innovation, technology, civil protection, the qualification of human resources and the attraction of investment.

“ The meeting provided an opportunity to learn Israeli experiences in the modernisation of municipal services, notably through the development of technology solutions shared between local authorities,” he added.