The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Bendito dos Santos Freitas, accompanied the President of the Republic, José Ramos-Horta, at the inauguration of the 21st President of the Portuguese Republic, António José Seguro, who succeeds Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. The ceremony took place on March 9th, 2026, at the Assembly of the Republic in Lisbon. 
Besides the Timorese Foreign Minister and the President of the Republic of Timor-Leste, who also holds the Presidency of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), the event was attended by senior international figures, including King Felipe VI of Spain and the Presidents of the Republic of Angola, João Lourenço; São Tomé and Príncipe, Carlos Manuel Vila Nova; Cape Verde, José Maria das Neves; and Mozambique, Daniel Chapo.
In his speech, President António José Seguro extended a “warm greeting” to President Ramos-Horta and the other Heads of State of the CPLP countries attending the ceremony, stating that their presence “symbolises the strength of the historical, cultural, and economic ties that unite our peoples and reaffirm the values of cooperation, friendship, and dialogue that we share”.
The new Portuguese Head of State also stated that “in its diversity, the Portuguese-speaking community demonstrates that a common language can also be the sharing of a greater ambition: a project of joint development and affirmation in a world that increasingly needs understanding and peace”.