The Cape Verdean Head of state convened the Council of the Republic this Monday December 18 to discuss the wars and the commemoration of national dates and events, issues that have generated tension with the government and much discussion in the country.
In a press release, the Presidency of the Republic said that the meeting, scheduled for 09:00 local time this Monday, will focus essentially on geostrategic wars and armed conflicts in Africa and around the world and their repercussions in Cape Verde, as well as on the commemoration of national dates and landmark events in the Republic.
The issue of wars and armed conflicts is one of the subjects that has generated tension between José Maria Neves, the former prime minister supported by the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV, currently in opposition) and the government, the most recent case of which was the meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ulisses Correia e Silva, on the island of Sal, whose lack of articulation displeased the Cape Verdean head of state.
In this case, José Maria Neves said that he had been confronted with a “fait accompli” and, although he saw “no harm” in the Prime Minister receiving the Ukrainian President, he reiterated his call for greater political coordination in the country.
A week ago, the Cape Verdean President spoke out against the country’s abstention from a United Nations resolution on the conflict between Israel and Hamas, approved on Tuesday by 153 of the 193 countries, as he had done in October.
The Cape Verdean government, supported by the Movement for Democracy (MpD), justified its abstention on the grounds of consistency, because the resolution (like the October one) did not consider “provisions relating to the condemnation of terrorist acts” by Hamas.