On Tuesday morning, Bettel and Braz met with Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the President of Portugal. The statesmen were accompanied by the Luxembourgish Ambassador in Lisbon, Jean-Jacques Welfring, and the Portuguese Ambassador to Luxembourg, Antonio Gamito.
Later on Tuesday, the delegation had an appointment with Lisbon's mayor. Amongst other appointments, Bettel and Braz also went to the Luxembourgish Embassy's official reception celebrating the Grand Duchy's National Day. Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa was also invited to the celebration and met with Bettel afterwards.
Luxembourg and Portugal share a special relationship given the Portuguese community's status as the largest expatriate community in Luxembourg, counting 95,500 citizens including the Deputy Prime Minister, Felix Braz. As a result of the large Portuguese community, the Luxembourgish and Portuguese governments work closely and have an 'excellent bilateral relationship', according to the Ministry of State press release.
Bettel described National Day as the 'symbol of unity of our country', highlighting the honour of being able to celebrate the day in Portugal.
