From the Continent: Portugal’s Crisis

President Reagan, a gracious guest, spoke optimistically about the future of Portugal when he visited the country on the last leg of his European journey. But the small country on the Iberian peninsula faces great difficulties that won’t disappear when it joins the European Common Market next year. There is bitter fighting between political parties, large-scale corruption, and serious economic stagnation. Portugal, which can boast a glorious past, faces a perilous future.

To many in the Western world, Portugal seems a minor annex of Spain. But 450 years ago Portugal controlled the coasts of Africa, a good part of India, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Portuguese priests founded missions in China and Japan, and Portuguese soldiers conquered Ethiopia and occupied parts of South America’s east coast.

EK

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Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn

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President Reagan, a gracious guest, spoke optimistically about the future of Portugal when he visited the country on the last leg of his European journey. But the small country on the Iberian peninsula faces great difficulties that won’t disappear when it joins the European Common Market next year. There is bitter fighting between political parties, large-scale corruption, and serious economic stagnation. Portugal, which can boast a glorious past, faces a perilous future.

To many in the Western world, Portugal seems a minor annex of Spain. But 450 years ago Portugal controlled the coasts of Africa, a good part of India, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Portuguese priests founded missions in China and Japan, and Portuguese soldiers conquered Ethiopia and occupied parts of South America’s east coast.