European: are the pro-Russian positions of Chega’s list leader an embarrassment for Ventura? “It can be a source of discomfort”

When, when saying goodbye to senior European representatives in Brussels, António Costa moved the Portuguese radical right away from Euroscepticism, he was referring to André Ventura, more than the party he leads as an absolutely dominant figure. “Unlike other far-right parties in Europe, Chega never campaigned against the EU”, Costa pointed out, also mentioning the agreement, from the outset, that Chega showed in relation to the support provided by the 27 to Ukraine. He did not do so thinking about António Tânger Corrêa, the head of the list appointed by Chega to the Europeans, and who was revealed by Ventura on Monday.

Kiev’s critical positions were known, which the former consul general of Portugal in Goa and Rio de Janeiro and Portuguese ambassador to several countries shared on social media (and which are no longer available). On one occasion, he spoke of “Kiev’s many wrong decisions” and “Russia’s ‘siege’ of the West”. The vice-president of Chega – who, when contacted by Expresso, sent clarifications for later, highlighting that “it is necessary to complete the entire program” – went even further, admitting: “I also don’t understand the chorus of lamentations that rises from the part of those who were not outraged when the United States and its allies and NATO attacked, invaded and occupied, under false pretexts, territories thousands of kilometers away, as was the case in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, to only mention the most recent ones.”

Appropriating phrases from others, he also points the finger at the Ukrainian head of state: “President Zelensky’s government (and those of his companions) voluntarily ignored the country’s situation, opting for an alignment with Washington and relying on elements coming from strange forces, including confessed Nazis, such as the members of the Azov Battalion.” In his texts, references were also made to eight years of “provocations and attacks on citizens considered pro-Russian, without any reaction from the central government”.