During a meeting this Wednesday, the Angolan president stressed that time is of the essence and the people of both countries are “eager to feel the benefits of the friendship” that binds them.
He added that both parties have the political will to further expand cooperation, but they need to “move from intentions to practice.”
For his part, the Czech head of government said that “the $17 million of mutual trade cooperation is something that could be improved,” alluding to the current state of relations between Angola and the Czech Republic.
Lourenço also spoke that day with the presidents of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies and learned about aspects of the functioning of these bodies.
The Angolan President hailed his visit to the country as a great boost to friendly and cooperative relations, noting that both parties have better conditions for cooperation and deepening their relations for the benefit of their respective peoples.
In this sense, in a press conference with Czech President Petr Pavel, he emphasized the need to update the legal instruments that will serve as the basis for this new phase, a first step being the signing this Wednesday of a memorandum of understanding on political consultations.
This will be followed by other legal bodies in more specific areas, such as the Agreement on Mutual Investment Promotion and Protection; the double taxation agreement; and the agreement on visa waiver in diplomatic and service passports, which could be extended to all passports, he explained.
The Angolan leader said his country is creating a good business environment and is trying to attract foreign investment to contribute to the development of the national economy.
In this context, he expressed interest in the further development of the Czech Republic's agricultural and industrial sectors, areas in which the two nations could cooperate, as well as higher education, technology and tourism.
He also expressed interest in cooperation in the field of defense and praised the positive development of the Czech Republic, which has modernized its army, which Angola also intends to do, he commented.
João Lourenço invited the Czech President to visit Luanda at the best opportunity and thanked the authorities and people of the European nation for the friendly and warm welcome.
The Angolan president was received with military honors at the Prague Palace this Wednesday for official talks with President Petr Pavel. Before this meeting, both presidential delegations had a private meeting.
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