The Secretary-General met today with H.E. Mr. Eduardo Ferro Rodrigues, President of the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal.

The Secretary-General raised the importance of the swift ratification of the Paris Agreement on climate change by Portugal. He also discussed with the President of the Assembly the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Secretary-General commended Portugal's compassionate leadership regarding refugees and stressed the need to forge a common response to the large movements of refugees and migrants towards Europe. He also spoke about his Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism.

They also discussed the role of parliamentarians as the voices of their constituencies and the importance of strengthening the cooperation between the United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentarian Union (IPU).