Barbados and Portugal have agreed to enhance their bilateral relationship.
This was discussed during a courtesy call between Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Dr. Jerome Walcott, and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Portugal, his Excellency Francisco André, held in the margins of the Seventy–sixth Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Minister Walcott proposed potential cooperation initiatives in air services and maritime affairs.
He encouraged Portugal to continue its advocacy for Small Island Developing States’ issues at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), scheduled to be held in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, between October 31 and November 12, 2021.
The Minister also encouraged the Portuguese Government to establish a mission in the Eastern Caribbean.
During the period June 27 to July 1, 2022, Portugal, along with Kenya, will host the 2022 United Nations Conference to Support the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development (UN Ocean Conference).
Barbados and Portugal established diplomatic relations in 1989 and the two countries have common interests, such as the Blue Economy, maritime affairs, sustainable development and human rights issues.