The old year, which will remain in our memories as the worst of our lives, was 'fired' with pomp and circumstance, with brilliance, colors and bang. The year that disappointed us so much already belongs to history. There follows another one with the same or perhaps bigger challenges. But hope and change, as in times of celebration, are all of us and forever.
Hope and Change is a word that I like a lot and that I use regularly in my conversations. "Ho-pe and Chan-ge" has an incredible sound. Perhaps the fact that I value the sounds of each word, the way they are pronounced, the diction and the intensity of the vowels has remained in my childhood. Hope and change is all we need for 2021, which now begins. The vaccine is now the simplest translation of these two words worldwide.
Portugal from today will be ahead of the destinations of the 27 countries in the first six months of this year and will help the economies to recover.
The Brexit theme also deserves a deep reflection, thanks to the British ambassador in Portugal, Chris Sainty. The United Kingdom has been an ally of Portugal for some 600 years and the concerns of this future relationship are great, especially for sectors that depend on exports to lands of her majesty, such as Port wine.
In terms of foreign policy, on the other side of the Atlantic we have strong hopes and changes in our European relationship with the United States, which as of the 20th has a new leadership, that of Joe Biden. The policy of multilateralism should return to the stage as well as the capacity for dialogue - without extremism, racism or Trump complexes -, which will certainly and positively mark a new way of building bridges between all continents.
We will all want to believe that leaders will finally have the ability to break with the dogmas of the past, and I am not just referring to the United States. In Europe, three women stand out for their courage, boldness and strategic vision. At the head, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, also Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), and Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany. These three women today occupy the places that are making a difference in the management of the pandemic and in the congregation of Europe in favor of a greater good: placing above all the strength of the European people, be they frugal or Latin, to win one of the worst crises of recent history. Well, there are those who, in their reality and context, become an example to follow, as well as all men in similar contexts.
