Marcos Perestrello elected President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly
25 November 2024
MONTRÉAL – The NATO Parliamentary Assembly elected Marcos Perestrello de Vasconcellos (Portugal) as its new president on Monday.
“As President of this Assembly, I will work tirelessly to further foster the bond between Europe and North America. All of us, as legislators, must be at the forefront of this effort,” Perestrello said after his election at the Assembly’s annual session in Montréal.
The election comes at a time of unprecedented challenges including Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine and consolidating global alliance of authoritarian states.
“As elected representatives of our people, we parliamentarians have a crucial role in pushing back against the creeping ‘Ukraine fatigue’ and urging our governments to increase and accelerate the support to Ukraine, including by advancing Ukraine’s path to NATO membership,” Perestrello stated.
He also expressed strong support for the establishment of a Centre for Democratic Resilience at NATO Headquarters to serve as a clearing house of best practices for Allies and partners alike in addressing threats to democracies. The Assembly’s long-standing top recommendation to Allied leaders and NATO, the Centre would play a key role in facilitating the mission of the Alliance, Perestrello said.
“Let us continue this journey together and redouble our efforts to strengthen our unique transatlantic Alliance, ensuring it remains steadfast in fulfilling its noble purpose, while being mindful that democracy is the best instrument we have to achieve lasting peace, stability and prosperity,” Perestrello underlined.
As part of his mandate, the President-elect committed to promoting the parliamentary track of engagement with NATO partners and major non-aligned democracies.
“Strong as our Alliance is, when faced with threats of such magnitude, we must continue expanding the network of friends both in our direct neighbourhood and far beyond,” Perestrello stated.
In his past roles, Perestrello served in the Portuguese government as Secretary of State for National Defence and Maritime Affairs from 2009 to 2011, and Secretary of State for National Defence from 2015 to 2018.
He was Deputy Mayor of Lisbon from 2007 to 2009.
Marcos Perestrello held the position of Chair of the National Defence Committee of the Portuguese Parliament and is currently its Vice-President. Within the NATO PA, he chaired the Sub-Committee on NATO Partnerships in the Political Committee and served as the Assembly’s Vice-President from 2023 to 2024.
The Assembly also elected five Vice-Presidents: Agnes Vadai (Hungary), Sir Alec Shelbrooke (United Kingdom), Mikko Savola (Finland), Julie Dzerowicz (Canada), and Johann Wadephul (Germany).
Perestrello thanked the Assembly’s outgoing President, US Congressman Gerald E. Connolly, “whose outstanding leadership guided our Assembly over the years and made it one of the pillars of our transatlantic family”.
President Connolly has served as a US Congressman for fifteen years and was twice NATO PA President, first from 2020 to 2022, then from July to November this year. “These are very big shoes to fill,” Marcos Perestrello said.
Distribution channels: Politics
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