"The biggest test is knowing what the population says of the troops on the ground" and 2what everyone told us is that when there is a problem they feel relieved to know it’s the Portuguese who are coming".

Prime Minister António Costa was quoting the High Representative of the UN Secretary General in the Central African Republic, Valentine Sendanyoye Rugwabiza, in Bangui, the country’s capital, during a speech to the national troops deployed to the country.

António Costa underlined that "it is always a reason of great pride for a Prime Minister to arrive wherever it may be, whether it’s Lithuania, Romania, Afghanistan, Iraq, or the Central African Republic and hear the local authorities and multilateral institutions say they are thankful for what the Portuguese do". 

"Here, both the President of the Republic [Faustin-Archange Touadéra] and the High Representative of the UN Secretary General of the UN", with whom he met", "complimented the Portuguese forces", he added. 

António Costa, together with the Minister of National Defence, Helena Carreiras, visited the Portuguese military i the Central African Republic international missions: the European Union Training Mission, the European Union Civilian Advisory and Monitoring Mission, and the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).

The national force deployed to the country, made up of 215 troops, mostly Army paratroopers, as well as a Navy officer and three Air Force officers, is the 12th that has been providing services in the country since 2017

During his speech at the barracks they occupy, after a snack and a briefing on the mission’s logistics, he claimed the Portuguese military mission in the Central African Republic is an important factor for the Portuguese Armed Forces and Portugal’s credibility.

"This Portuguese mission, which began in 2017, was new regarding the type of Portuguese missions. Yet, over the years it has been a factor of bringing credibility and prestige to our Armed Forces" due to "the major appreciation showed by the local authorities and the United Nations". 

"There is clearly a difference that has to do with our Armed Forces’ competence, with the training given, the preparedness, but also the way in which the Portuguese undertake the missions they perform", he said. 

António Costa claimed he had wanted to visit the Portuguese troops last Christmas, but it hadn’t been possible. However, "at the end of the year, the conditions of the Armed Forces’ performance changed significantly with the withdrawal of the French troops". 

"It was necessary for the United Nations to take on a new role in this field, ensuring the necessary conditions for the mission and the relations with the Central African Republic to continue. Fortunately, these conditions have been met", he stated.