Photo: Ricardo Oliveira/GPM - Click here  and see the photo in high resolution (jpg)

• Speech of Prime Minister to the European Parliament (pdf)
• Speech of the Portuguese Prime Minister to the European Parliament (mp3, in Portuguese)
• Speech of the Portuguese Prime Minister to the European Parliament (wmv, in Portuguese)
• Priorities of the Portuguese Presidency - A stronger Union for a better world (pdf)

The Prime Minister and acting President of the European Council, José Sócrates, was in Strasbourg on July 10th, at the European Parliament, in order to present the objectives of the Portuguese Presidency of the EU, which began on 1st July.

Before addressing the MEPs, José Sócrates held a bilateral meeting with the President of the EP Hans-Gert Pöttering. Both leaders discussed some issues on the new European Treaty and the Intergovernmental Conference

The Lisbon Government plans on convening the IGC during the Council of the 27 Heads of Diplomacy that will take place this month in Brussels.

The President of the European Parliament and the leaders of the different political groups in the Strasbourg Assembly had already had the opportunity to listen to José Sócrates’ main topics on the Portuguese Presidency of the EU on the 29th of June, in Lisbon.

On that occasion, Hans Gert Pöttering stated that the EP “strongly supports” the programme, priorities and calendar presented by Portugal, aiming at the approval of the new European Treaty in October”.