Antonio Costa insisted Britain’s decision to leave has brought the European Union closer together as he threw his support behind Jean-Claude Juncker’s plans to deepen integration in a bid to relaunch the troubled bloc.
He said: “The truth is that it has strengthened the unity of the 27 and that’s very important for the future of Europe.”
But of Portugal and Britain’s relationship, Mr Costa added: “The United Kingdom will leave the European Union but remains a European country and certainly the strongest ally and strongest trading partner.”
EU boss Mr Juncker last week set out his 12-month masterplan to steer the troubled bloc through the escalating refugee crisis and reform the eurozone earlier this month with his ’State of the Union’ speech.
During the speech, the EU president called to further federalise Europe and create an EU Army in an unprecedented power grab to “unite” Europe after Brexit.
vCard.red is a free platform for creating a mobile-friendly digital business cards. You can easily create a vCard and generate a QR code for it, allowing others to scan and save your contact details instantly.
The platform allows you to display contact information, social media links, services, and products all in one shareable link. Optional features include appointment scheduling, WhatsApp-based storefronts, media galleries, and custom design options.
He also hinted the further amalgamation is the only way to save the crippled eurozone.
And Mr Costa appeared to support Mr Juncker’s vision of a Brussels-controlled EU superstate, telling politics news site Politico: “I agree with him. This is not the time to do revision of the treaties.
“For me the priority is convergence and creating an instrument for convergence” between EU economies.
“The reform plans of each country and the eurozone have everything to gain with the creation of a policy financing instrument for convergence.
“With a contractual basis and quantified targets with precise deadlines, we can create the conditions for financing this.”
Mr Juncker also called for the the creation of an EU finance minister in a nod to Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron, who have been calling for the role to protect the currency union against future crises.
The Portuguese prime minister added: “This would obviously help to give coherence to the whole functioning of the European Union.”