Rangel expects rapid resolution on the situation in Guinea-Bissau

“Hthere is much talk of the crisis of multilateralism, but this idea is, in my view, completely wrong. There have never been as many multilateral interventions as there is now,” said Paulo Rangel, who spoke at the colloquium “CPLP 30 years – A Community of Language and Future”, at the Centro Cultural de Belém, in Lisbon.

The Minister stressed the importance of the Member States of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP) also being integrated into other regional organisations, considering that this can strengthen the projection of the community.

“ In the case of the CPLP it is the language that unites the Member States, but in many [cases] it is the international organisations. We must create a network of multilateral regional organisations or multilateral thematic organisations. It is essential to put into network ", said.

Rangel pointed out as an example Timor-Leste, which joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), considering that the integration of the CPLP countries into other regional organisations “gives a projection, a depth to the other CPLP members that is huge.”.

“ Because here creates a common bond”, he added.

On the United Nations, he also rejected catastrophic visions, recalling that the organization has faced difficulties in the past, particularly during the Cold War, when “no resolution passed”.

“What happens is that this is the nature of the United Nations,” he said, stressing that there is “a misfit of those powers that have permanent access to the security process, and that which is the multipolarity that exists.”.

Rangel added that Portugal “has been a great advocate for the reform of the United Nations.”.

The minister also highlighted the importance of the Portuguese language, stating that “CPLP is also a promoter and a defender of the Portuguese language”.

“ Having said that, I wanted to say that we in the CPLP, and I will say it expressly, without any problem, today we have a concern that is Guinea-Bissau”, he said.

“ Because we would like to do this seminar, this colloquium, with all the members of the CPLP. And that’s why we’re all working.”

Guinea-Bissau has been suspended from participating in the activities of the CPLP since December 2025, following the military coup of 26 November that year, which interrupted the electoral process. The decision of the CPLP provides that the suspension shall apply until the constitutional order is resumed.

New elections were scheduled for 6 December this year, but today the conditions for voting were not met.

The previous presidential and early legislative elections had taken place on 23 November 2025, but the process was interrupted by the military coup on 26 November, before the completion of the clearance of the results.

Rangel said that this is a will shared by the Member States and their political leaders, stressing the importance of Guinea-Bissau for the organisation.

“ Because they're founding states, they're states we love very much. And I wanted to say this because for us this is a fundamental issue”, he said.

The Minister has therefore expressed his hope that the ongoing dialogue will overcome the situation in Guinea-Bissau.

“ We are hopeful that this dialogue will certainly bear fruit on time. But I wanted to say this to say that here, on this day, there is no suspension for us from that point of view. In this discussion in which we are, we are all emanated from the same spirit,” he said.

“I wanted to give that word to both the Guinean people and their current authorities that we really want to get over this situation as quickly as possible. And we are sure that this will be achieved”, he concluded.