Seguro marks three months in office with Day of Portugal visit to Lajes island, sidesteps base deal review
On his first trip to the Azores as head of state, António José Seguro used the Day of Portugal celebrations to stress national unity and sovereignty, while deflecting calls to renegotiate the Lajes base accord with the United States.
Arrival in the Azores
President António José Seguro landed on Terceira Island this morning, beginning two days of official commemorations for the Day of Portugal, Camões and the Portuguese Communities. He was greeted by Susana Goulart Costa, the newly appointed Representative of the Republic for the Azores – the first woman to hold the post. The meeting took place at Solar Madre Deus in Angra do Heroísmo, where Seguro was accompanied by his wife, Margarida Maldonado Freitas.
Speaking to journalists after the 30-minute encounter, Seguro called his first presidential visit to the archipelago "a privilege and an honour". He noted that 2026 marks the regional autonomies of the Azores and Madeira, describing them as "important for the development of these regions, for the balanced development of our country and to guarantee territorial cohesion".
Three months of "equilibrium"
The trip comes exactly three months after Seguro took office. He told reporters he had aimed to be "a president above all parties, a president of equilibrium" and assessed his performance positively: "I feel happy because, in these three months – today marks precisely three months since I became President of the Republic – I have succeeded." He added that his relationship with Prime Minister Luís Montenegro has been marked by "good articulation" and "good weekly work meetings".
Tem havido uma boa articulação [com o primeiro-ministro], boas reuniões de trabalho que temos tido semanalmente e, naturalmente, isso corresponde àquilo que eu também assumi como compromisso com os portugueses. Ser um presidente acima de todos os partidos, um presidente de equilíbrio.
Lajes question deferred
Despite choosing Terceira – home to the Lajes air base used by US forces – for the national holiday, Seguro refused to be drawn on the future of the bilateral defence agreement. As a presidential candidate in January, he had called for its revision "in light of the new geopolitics" and transatlantic relations. Now, with the US engaged in war with Iran and the base under fresh scrutiny, he insisted: "This is not the moment to discuss that situation. It is the moment to celebrate Portugal, a moment of national unity."
The stance creates a gap with Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel, who earlier on Tuesday told Antena 1 that a revision would only be possible after the war in Iran ends. Rangel had previously warned that foreign policy is a government competence: "The spheres of competence of each are very clear. Foreign policy, obviously, is a competence of the Government."
São muito claras as esferas de competência de cada um. E a definição da política externa, obviamente, que é uma competência do Governo.
Sovereignty and strategic autonomy
Seguro repeatedly framed his visit as an act of sovereignty affirmation. "The President of the Republic asserts Portuguese sovereignty every day, in every corner of our country," he said, adding that "asserting our sovereignty, defending our national independence, is one of the noblest and most demanding tasks of a President." He avoided directly linking his choice of the island to recent remarks by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio about alleged facilities at Lajes, but acknowledged the setting was a reminder of that responsibility.
On foreign policy, Seguro described himself as "a defender of NATO" and called for deepening ties with the United States "at all levels – economic, commercial, security." Yet he balanced that with a call for Europe to achieve "strategic autonomy, particularly in matters of security and defence," arguing the two aims are complementary. He also urged Portugal to adopt a broader Atlantic outlook, reaching beyond the US to Canada and the Mercosur bloc.
Acho que as duas dimensões são perfeitamente complementares. Eu sou um defensor da manutenção da NATO como organização de defesa e de segurança, e considero que nós devemos ter boas relações com os Estados Unidos da América. Devemos aprofundar essas relações a todos os níveis, económico, comercial, de segurança.
Celebrations ahead
The formal programme continues into Wednesday with the central ceremony of the Day of Portugal. Seguro said the choice of the Azores, "in the middle of the Atlantic," was deliberate to underscore national cohesion. He noted that "national unity and the union of the Portuguese" is one of his main concerns as president.
