Manuel Marcelo Curto presented Tuesday a program of his country's EU presidency, adding that Lisbon plans to work in close cooperation with its European partners to develop Russia-EU relations.
Creating conditions to improve the functioning of the internal European market is a priority for Portugal's EU presidency, Curto said, stressing the importance of developing business, tourism, and strengthening the education system.
Curto also said Portugal's EU presidency would also focus on measures to strengthen security.
The latest Russia-EU summit was held in May in the Volga river city of Samara and was dominated by Western criticism of Moscow over Russia's alleged poor human rights and lack of democracy, as well as its refusal to lift a ban on Polish meat imports.
