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The Parliament of Portugal begins its new legislature with a predominance of right-wing deputies

The Parliament of Portugal began a new legislature on Tuesday after the selections of March 10, with a majority of right-wing deputies, of which 80 are moderates of the winning coalition Democratic Alliance (AD), 50 ultras of the Chega party and 8 of Liberal Initiative (IL).

The deputies arrived early in the morning at the unicameral Assembly of the Republic (Parliament), where they greeted each other and chatted in a relaxed way.

In the seats of the Government sat the appointed Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, leader of AD, and his collaborators, although the political leader has not yet announced his Executive, which will take office on April 2.

In the absence of a president of the chamber, the person in charge of opening the session was the head of the bench of the main formation that makes up the AD, the Social Democratic Party (PSD), Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, who was sitting next to Montenegro.

In a brief speech, Miranda Sarmento welcomed the 230 deputies, “who now begin functions, without forgetting those who served this Assembly and the country in the last legislature, the 15th legislature, and who now do not resume their place as deputies, and thank those who have ceased their functions for the work they carried out in favor of the country and the Portuguese.”

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He wished that when this legislature ends, “in September 2028, the country could be better, the country could be more developed, richer, more prosperous and also more just.”

Despite the fact that Miranda Sarmento spoke of the end of the legislature in September 2028, the truth is that there are doubts that Montenegro and its future Government can complete it due to its tight victory against the Socialist Party, which has 78 seats, and its refusal to agree with Chega.

Miranda Sarmento gave way to the deputy who has been in Parliament for the longest time, António Filipe, of the Portuguese Communist Party, to preside over this session, waiting for the candidate proposed by the PSD to be president of the chamber, José Pedro Aguiar Branco, to be voted on Tuesday afternoon.

Filipe rose from his seat to occupy the position of president of Parliament and joked that he would never have imagined when he first entered the assembly at the age of 26 that he would one day be in this situation.

Also elected the two temporary secretaries for this session, Filipe went on to present the first draft resolution of this legislature, supported by all the parliamentary groups, to constitute a provisional commission that verifies the powers of the elected deputies.

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After reading the names of the members of that commission, Filipe suspended the session until 3:00 p.m. local time (same time GMT), when the president of the chamber will be voted on.

After the absolute majority of the Socialist Party in the previous legislature, AD has 80 seats (78 of the PSD and 2 of the CDS-PP), followed by the socialists with 78 deputies and the far-right Chega, with 50.

The far-right formation was the party that grew the most in the elections of March 10, more than quadrupling its seats, which went from 12 to 50.

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International

Mexico, Brazil and Colombia left out of Trump’s “Shield of the Americas” summit

Left-wing governments in Latin America, including Mexico, Brazil and Colombia, were excluded from the “Shield of the Americas” summit convened by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The meeting, held in Miami, Florida, brought together 12 presidents from across the continent to discuss strategies to combat drug cartels and organized crime.

In Mexico’s case, President Claudia Sheinbaum had recently rejected the use of military force as a solution to the drug trafficking problem. She has argued that her administration’s security strategy is producing results and emphasized that force alone is not the answer.

During the summit, Trump said that most narcotics entering the United States come through Mexico and referred to his previous conversations with Sheinbaum on the issue.

“I like the president very much, she’s a very good person,” Trump said. “But I told her: ‘Let me eradicate the cartels.’ And she said, ‘No, no, no, please, president.’ We have to eradicate them. We have to finish them.”

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The remarks highlighted ongoing differences between Washington and Mexico over how to confront drug trafficking networks operating across the region.

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International

Trump announces 17-nation alliance in the Americas to “destroy” drug cartels

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Saturday the creation of a 17-nation alliance across the Americas aimed at dismantling drug cartels, during a regional summit held at his golf club in Doral.

Speaking to a group of allied leaders at the Shield of the Americas Summit, Trump said the initiative would rely on military force to eliminate powerful criminal networks operating throughout the hemisphere.

“The heart of our agreement is the commitment to use lethal military force to destroy these sinister cartels and terrorist networks. Once and for all, we will put an end to them,” Trump told the assembled heads of state.

The Republican leader argued that large portions of territory in the Western Hemisphere have fallen under the control of transnational gangs and pledged U.S. support to governments seeking to confront them. He even suggested the potential use of highly precise missiles against cartel leaders.

Before making the announcement, Trump greeted the roughly twelve leaders attending the summit, including close allies such as Javier Milei, Daniel Noboa and Nayib Bukele, whom he described as a “great president.”

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The meeting forms part of Trump’s broader regional strategy inspired by his reinterpretation of the Monroe Doctrine, which seeks to reinforce Washington’s influence in the Americas, strengthen security cooperation and counter the growing presence of powers such as China.

Trump pointed to recent U.S. actions in the region as examples of his administration’s approach, including the operation that led to the capture of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro earlier this year.

The summit also takes place amid escalating international tensions following the conflict launched last week by the United States and Israel against Iran.

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International

Trump replaces Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem with Senator Markwayne Mullin

U.S. President Donald Trump announced Thursday the departure of Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security, one of the key architects of the administration’s policy of deporting undocumented immigrants.

Noem, who has been assigned a new role as a “special envoy” to Latin America, will be replaced starting March 31 by Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin, the president said in a message posted on his social media platform Truth Social.

According to media reports, Trump made the decision after Noem’s recent hearings in Congress, during which she faced tough questions regarding the awarding of a major public contract.

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