The President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa came early to the Iberoamerican Summit in time to sign bilateral agreements with the Dominican Republic. These have to do with bilateral cooperation in technical, economic, scientific and cultural areas. The agreements focus on working together in science, technology and higher education, through the Ministry of Superior Education (Mescyt). The Mescyt agreement calls for exchange of students, scholarships and educational activities.
The visit of Rebelo de Sousa is the first of a Portuguese President to the Dominican Republic.
The media focused on the possibility of Portugal siding with the DR to eliminate the Schengen Visa for Dominicans. A spokesperson for the European Union had said earlier that the elimination of the visa is unlikely. When visas were eliminated for Dominicans to Argentina, Dominicans traveled in large numbers overstaying irregularly. When visas were eliminated to Guatemala, thousands of Dominicans traveled to Guatemala not for tourism but rather to use the Guatemala route to the United States. The visas to Argentina and Guatemala have been reinstated.
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El Caribe
El Caribe
Listin Diario
27 March 2023