Wayzata World Factbook 1995/World Factbook - 1995 Edition - Wayzata Technology (1995).iso/mac/text/Build/orig BACKGR/BNOT0086.TXT

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National Trade Data Bank
ITEM ID     : ST BNOTES PORTUGAL
DATE        : Oct 28, 1994

AGENCY      : U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
PROGRAM     : BACKGROUND NOTES
TITLE       : Background Notes - PORTUGAL

Source key      : ST
Program key     : ST BNOTES
Update sched.   : Occasionally
Data type       : TEXT
End year        : 1992
Date of record  : 19941018
Keywords 3      :
Keywords 3      : | PORTUGAL

US DEPARTMENT OF STATE
BACKGROUND NOTES:  PORTUGAL

Official Name: Republic of Portugal

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 94,276 sq. km. (36,390 sq. mi.), including the Azores and
Madeira Islands; about the size of Indiana. Cities: Capital-Lisbon
(pop. 2.1  million in the metropolitan district). Other city-Oporto (1.7
million in metropolitan district). Terrain:  Mountainous in the north;
rolling in central south. Climate:  Maritime temperate.


People
Nationality:  Noun and adjective-Portuguese (sing. and pl.)
Population (1989):  10.3 million. Annual growth rate (1989): 3%.
Ethnic groups:  Homogeneous Mediterranean stock with small black
African minority.  Religion:  Roman Catholic  97%.  Language:
Portuguese.  Education:  Years compulsory- 6.  Attendance-60%..
Literacy  (1985)-83.3%.  Health:  Infant mortality rate
(1987)-14.2/1,000. Life expectancy  (1985)-73 yrs. Work force (4.7
million, 1989):  Agriculture-19%.  Industry-35%.  Government,
commerce, and services-46%.


Government
Type:  Parliamentary democracy. Constitution:  Entered into effect
April 25, 1976; revised October 30, 1982 and June 1, 1989.

Branches:  Executive-president (chief of state), Council of State
(presidential advisory body), prime minister (head of government),
Council of Ministers. Legislative-unicameral Assembly of the Republic
(between 230 and 235 deputies). Judicial- Supreme Court, district
courts, appeals courts, Constitutional Tribunal.

Major political parties:  Social Democratic Party (PSD), Socialist Party
(PS), Portuguese Communist Party (PCP), Center Social Democratic
Party (CDS), Democratic Renewal Party (PRD), Popular Monarchist
Party (PPM).  Suffrage:  Universal over 18.

Subdivisions:  18 districts, 2 autonomous regions, and 1
dependency.

Central government budget (1990):  $23.2 billion (expenditures).

Defense (1990):  2.2% of GDP.

Flag:  A vertically divided field-one-third green along the staff,
two-thirds red; centered on the dividing line is the Portuguese coat
of arms encircled in gold.


Economy
GDP (1989):  $45 billion.  Annual growth rate (1989):  5. 4%. Per
capita GDP (1989):  $4,363.  Avg. inflation rate (1989): 12.6%.

Natural resources:  Fish, cork, tungsten, iron, copper, tin and
uranium ores.

Production (percentages of 1988 total gross value added):
Agriculture, forestry, fisheries (7%).

Industry (44% of GDP):  Types-textiles, clothing, footwear (9%);
construction (7%); food, beverages, tobacco (6%).

Services (49%):  Main branches-commerce (20%), government and
nonmarketable services (15%), housing and other marketable
services (10%), banking and finance (8%).

Trade (1989):  Exports- $12.7 billion:  clothing, footware, electrical
machinery and appliances, automobiles.  Imports-$18.9 billion:
electrical and nonelectrical machinery, automobiles, fuel, apppliances.
Partners-European Community, US, European Free Trade
Association (EFTA).

Official exchange rate (May 1990):  149 escudos=US$1.


Membership in International Organizations
UN and its specialized agencies, Council of Europe, North Atlantic
Treaty Organization (NATO), European Community (EC), Western
European Union (WEU), Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD), International Energy Agency (IEA), INTELSAT,
African Development Bank (ADB), African Development Fund (ADF),
Coordinating Committee for Multi-Lateral Export Controls (COCOM).


GEOGRAPHY

Portugal is made up of the mainland and the Azores and Madeira
Islands. Mainland Portugal is divided into two distinct topographical
and climatic regions by the Tagus River, which flows into the Atlantic
at Lisbon. North of the Tagus, Portugal is mountainous, with a rainy,
moderately cool climate; the south has rolling plains, less rainfall, and
a warm climate, particularly in the interior.

The Azores consist of nine rugged, mountainous islands (2,300 sq.
km.-888 sq. mi.) of volcanic origin lying 1,300 kilometers (about 800
mi.)  west of Lisbon. Their climate is moist and moderate. The
regional capital is Ponta Delgada (pop. 35,000) on Sao Miguel Island.

The Madeira Islands, located about 560 kilometers (350 mi.) west of
Morocco, are more rugged than the Azores. The archipelago
consists of two main islands and many uninhabited islets (790 sq.
km.-305 sq. mi.). Mild year-round temperatures attract many
tourists.Macau, on the southern coast of China, is an autonomous
entity under Portuguese administration. In April 1987, Portugal and
China signed an accord to return Macau to Chinese administration
in 1999. The former overseas territory of Goa, on the west coast of
the Indian subcontinent, was annexed by India in December 1961.
The former colony of Portuguese Timor, the eastern half of Timor
Island in the Indian Ocean north of Australia, was annexed by
Indonesia in July 1976. Portugal's former overseas territories in
Africa-including Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique,
and Sao Tome and Principe-achieved independence between 1974
and 1975.


PEOPLE

Portugal's earliest recorded inhabitants-members of an Ibero-Celtic
tribe known to Imperial Rome as the Lusitani and first mentioned in
the second century B.C.-have mixed with Germanic, Celtic, Roman,
Arabic, and African peoples to form today's relatively homogeneous
Portuguese population. Portuguese citizens of black African descent,
who emigrated to Portugal after decolonization of Portugal's African
territories, make up the country's only significant and distinct minority
group but probably number fewer than 100,000.

Portuguese Culture
Luis Vaz de Camoes (1524-80) is the most famous poet to have
written in Portuguese and is a Portuguese national hero. His
best-known work, The Lusiads, is an epic poem in 10 cantos about
Vasco da Gama's discovery of a sea route to India in 1497-98.
The Portuguese concept of saudade-nostalgia mixed with a
melancholy acceptance of fate-finds its clearest expression in the
songs of fado, heard most often in restaurants in Lisbon's older
districts, such as the Alfama.

Portugal has many ancient and medieval monuments and buildings,
that include the Pena and Sintra palaces; the ex-royal residence of
Queluz; the walled city of Obidos; the cathedrals at Batalha and
Alcobaca; the castle of Sao Jorge in Lisbon; Roman temple ruins in
Evora; and the castle of Afonso Henriques in Guimaraes, near
Oporto, where the Portuguese nation was founded.


HISTORY

Portugal is one of the oldest states in Europe. It traces its modern
history to A.D. 1140 when, following a 9-year rebellion against the
King of Leon-Castile, Afonso Henriques, the Count of Portugal,
became the country's first king, Afonso I. Afonso and his successors
expanded their territory southward, capturing Lisbon from the Moors
in 1147. The approximate present-day boundaries were secured in
1249 by Afonso III.

By 1337, Portuguese explorers had reached the Canary Islands.
Inspired by Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), explorers such
as Vasco da Gama, Bartolomeu Dias, and Pedro Alvares Cabral
made explorations from Brazil to India and Japan. Portugal eventually
became a massive colonial empire with vast territories in Africa and
Latin America (Brazil) and outposts in the Far East (East Timor,
Macau, Goa).

Dynastic disputes led in 1580 to the succession of  Philip II of Spain
to the Portuguese throne. A revolt ended Spanish hegemony in 1640,
and the House of Braganca was established as Portugal's ruling
family, lasting until the establishment of the Portuguese Republic in
1910.

During the next 16 years, intense political rivalries and economic
instability undermined newly established democratic institutions.
Responding to pressing economic problems, a military government,
which had taken power in 1926, named a prominent university
economist, Dr. Antonio Salazar finance minister in 1928, and prime
minister in 1932. For the next 42 years, Salazar and his successor,
Marcelo Caetano, appointed prime minister in 1968, ruled Portugal
as an authoritarian "corporate" state. Unlike most other European
countries, Portugal did not play a combatant role in World War II. It
was a charter member of NATO, joining in 1949.
In the early 1960s, wars with independence movements in Portugal's
African territories began to drain labor and wealth from Portugal.
Professional dissatisfaction within the military, coupled with a growing
sense of the futility of the African conflicts, led to the formation of the
clandestine "Armed Forces Movement" in 1973.
The downfall of the Portuguese corporate state came on April 25,
1974, when the Armed Forces Movement seized power in a nearly
bloodless coup and established a provisional military government.

Gen. Antonio de Spinola was installed as president after the coup but
resigned in September 1974 to protest the growing power
exercised by communist and leftist forces. He was replaced by
another general, Francisco da Costa Gomes, who retained a
procommunist, Gen. Vasco dos Santos Goncalves, as prime
minister. On March 11, 1975, a rebellion by rightist military officers
failed, and former President Spinola fled the country.

On April 25 (now Portugal's national day), the first anniversary of the
1974 coup, Portuguese voters chose a Constituent Assembly to draft
a constitution. The vote gave an overwhelming majority of 72% to
candidates of three democratic political parties: the Socialists (PS),
Popular Democrats (which later changed its name to Social
Democrats-PSD), and Center Social Democrats (CDS).
The communists and their allies in the Armed Forces Movement
attempted to play down their relative lack of popular support (the
Communist Party won only 12.5% of the vote) by tightening their
hold on the provisional government and by seeking to diminish
sharply the role of political parties.

Goncalves resigned under mounting civilian and military pressure,
and a new provisional government (the sixth since April 1974) took
office in September 1975, led by Adm. Jose Pinheiro de Azevedo.

The political tug-of-war continued until November 25, when left-wing
military elements seized control of several strategic military bases,
only to surrender peacefully the next day after a determined show of
force by loyal units under the direction of Lt. Col. Antonio Ramalho
Eanes.

Portugal's new constitution took effect on April 25, 1976, when
elections for a parliamentary Assembly of the Republic also were
held. In June, Eanes was elected president with 62% of the vote after
gaining the support of the three major democratic parties. He chose
Mario Soares, whose Socialist Party had won a plurality in the
parliamentary elections, to serve as prime minister of Portugal's first
democratic government since the 1920s.
Soares' minority socialist government fell in December 1977 and was
followed by a succession of short-lived coalition and minority
governments. In the July 1987 parliamentary elections, PSD leader
Cavaco Silva led his party to a stunning victory, resulting in the first
absolute majority for a single party.  The PSD received a slight
majority (just over 50%) of the popular vote but won 148 of the
then-250 seats in parliament.  Mario Soares, who had been elected
president in February 1986, consequently invited Prime Minister
Cavaco Silva to form a government, the first that appeared likely to
complete its 4-year term since the 1974 revolution.

Since entering office, the Cavaco Silva government has implemented
economic and social reforms intended to put Portugal on a more
competitive footing with its European partners.  The government and
the Socialist Party also cooperated in the assembly to eliminate
Marxist rhetoric from the constitution and to pave the way for full
privatization of public sector enterprises.  In the June 18, 1989,
European Parliamentary elections, the ruling Social Democratic Party
won 32.5% of the vote (vice 37% in 1987).  The socialists increased
their vote to 28.5%.  Nearly half of the registered voters stayed away
from the polls.


GOVERNMENT

The April 25, 1976, constitution defined Portugal as a
"Republic....engaged in the formation of a classless society."  The
1976 constitution was revised in 1982, and again in 1989.  The 1982
revision placed the military under strict civilian control, trimmed the
powers of the president, and abolished the Revolutionary Council (a
non-elected committee with legislative veto powers).  The 1989
revision eliminated much of the remaining Marxist rhetoric of the
original document, abolished the communist-inspired "agrarian
reform," and laid the groundwork for further privatization of
nationalized firms and government-owned communications media.

The four main organs of national government are the presidency, the
prime minister and Council of Ministers (the government), the
Assembly of the Republic (parliament), and the courts.

The president, elected to a 5-year term by direct, universal suffrage,
also is commander in chief of the armed forces.  Presidential powers
include appointing the prime minister and Council of Ministers (in
which the president must be guided by the assembly election
results), dismissal of the prime minister, dissolution of the assembly
to call early elections, veto over legislation (which may be overridden
by the assembly), and the declaration of states of war or siege.

The Council of State, an advisory body to the president, is
composed of the incumbents of six senior civilian offices, any former
presidents elected under the 1976 constitution, five members chosen
by the assembly, and five chosen by the president himself.

The government is headed by the presidentially appointed prime
minister, who names the Council of Ministers, subject to presidential
approval. A new government is required to define the broad outline
of its policy in a program and present it to the assembly for a
mandatory period of debate.  Failure of the assembly to reject the
program by a majority of deputies confirms the government in office.

The Assembly of the Republic is a unicameral body, composed of
between 230 and 235 deputies elected by direct universal suffrage
according to a system of proportional representation.  The term of
office for deputies is 4 years, unless the president dissolves the
assembly and calls for new elections.

The constitution provides for district and appeals courts.  The
national Supreme Court is the court of last instance.  Military,
administrative, and fiscal courts are designated as separate court
categories.  The constitution also provides for a nine-member
Constitutional Tribunal to review the constitutionality of legislation.

The constitution gives substantial autonomy to the locally elected
governments of the Azores and Madeira Islands.  A regional
autonomy statute for the Azores, establishing the Government of the
Autonomous Region of the Azores, was promulgated July 25, 1980,
and amended in 1987.  The Government of the Autonomous Region
of Madeira operates under a provisional autonomy statute in effect
since 1976.

Finally, the constitution provides for the progressive decentralization
of administration, calling for future reorganization on a regional basis.
Apart from the Azores and Madeira, the country is currently divided
into 18 districts, each headed by a governor appointed by the
Minister of Internal Administration.


Principal Government Officials
President of the Portuguese Republic-Mario Soares
Prime Minister-Anibal Cavaco Silva
Ministers
Defense Minister and the Presidency of the Council of
State-Fernando Nogueira
Minister of Foreign Affairs-Joao de Deus Pinheiro
Minister of Interior-Manuel Pereira
Minister of Justice- Laborinho Lucio
Minister of Finance-Joaquim Ferreira do Amaral
Armed Forces
Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces- Gen. Antonio da Silva Osorio
Soares Carneiro
Service Chiefs of Staff-Gen. Mario Firmino Miguel (Army), Adm.
Manuel da Cunha Esteves de Andrade e Silva (Navy), and Gen.
Tomas George Conceicao Silva (Air Force)
Ambassador to the United States-Joao Pereira Bastos

Portugal maintains an embassy in the United States at 2125
Kalorama Road NW., Washington, DC 20008 (tel. [phone]);
Consulates General in New York City, Boston, and San Francisco;
Consulates in Providence, RI; Newark, NJ; and New Bedford, Mass.;
and Honorary Consulates in Honolulu, Los Angeles, Houston, New
Orleans, Chicago, Philadelphia, Miami, Puerto Rico, and Waterbury,
Conn.  The Portuguese National Tourist Office in the United States
is located at 548 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10036 (tel:
212-354-4403).


ECONOMY

The Portuguese economy has made impressive economic gains both
since the tumultous post-1974 revolutionary period and since the
recessionary period of 1983-84.  In 1989, GDP grew by 4.5% (over
1988), exports by 14%, gross investment by 28%, and
unemployment fell to 6.7%.  Foreign investment in Portugal has
grown at an annual rate of 50% since 1984, reaching $1.2 billion in
1989.  This occurred because the majority government has pursued
a comprehensive plan of structural economic reform with objectives
to:

-- Promote investment-led growth;
-- Modernize industry and agriculture;
-- Privatize most state-owned enterprises;
-- Reduce the public sector deficit; and,
-- Hold down inflation.


The most ambitious element of the plan has been to  privatize firms
that were nationalized in 1974-75.  In 1988, the government began
the partial privatization (49% of the shares) of two enterprises, the
country's largest brewery and a mid-sized bank.  Both share
offerings were several times oversubscribed.  Future partial
privatizations, including another brewery, a cement company, and
other financial and insurance institutions, including the country's
largest commercial bank, are planned.  The major obstacle to
majority privatization of state enterprises was overcome by the June
1989 revision of the constitution that removed restrictions on private
ownership in industry.
Portuguese economic structure has changed dramatically since the
1974 revolution.  Finance and commercial relations with the former
colonies are less important, and the large industrial-financial groups
that once controlled much of the economy have been dismantled.
Since 1960, the proportion of the labor force engaged in agriculture
has dropped from 42% to 19%.  Agricultural production now
contributes only 7% of the country's GDP.  Portugal imports a
substantial share of its food and animal feed.

Industrial employment has risen from 21% to 35% of the labor force
since 1960.  Industry contributes 44% of the GDP.  Major products
are textiles, clothing, cork products, electronic equipment, machinery,
steel, woodpulp and paper, cement, tomato paste, canned seafood,
olive oil, assembled automobiles, and refined petroleum and
chemical products.  Portugal also has large shipbuilding and repair
yards.  Tourism has expanded and now accounts for more than 5%
of GDP.

The volume of foreign trade has increased from $873 million in 1960
to $31.6 billion in 1989, with imports of $18.9 billion and exports of
$12.7 billion.  Portugal's main trading partners are Western Europe
(EC countries now account for nearly 70% of all Portuguese trade)
and the United States.

Since 1979, Portuguese governments have sought to expand the
scope for private investment in the economy.  The 1982
constitutional revision modified many of the socialist features of the
1976 constitution and set the stage for legislation that opened up
several sectors, including banking, to private enterprise.  In 1984, six
foreign banks (including three from the United States) and four
Portuguese private banks began operations.  Portugal's foreign
investment legislation, liberalized considerably in 1986, streamlined
the approval process.  Investment proposals from EC countries and,
in practice, those from other countries, generally are approved on a
pro-forma basis by the Portuguese Government's Office of Foreign
Investment Services of the Foreign Trade Institute.

Inflation continued to rise in 1988-89, forcing the government to raise
its inflation target for 1989.   A plan to restrict consumer credit,
increase bank reserves, and reduce credit ceilings was imposed in
March 1989 to deal with the inflation problem.  Nevertheless, inflation
by the end of 1989 reached 12%.

The Portuguese current account balance has gone from a modest
surplus of $200 million in 1987 to a deficit of $650 million.  The March
1989 plan to curb inflation may have a mitigating effect on the current
account imbalance since consumer purchases have accounted for
most of Portugal's imports:  up 15% in 1989.  The imbalance is
partially offset by substantial capital inflows that should lead to
greater productivity in coming years.

The public sector deficit has fallen from 12% of GDP in 1985 to 7%
in 1989.  The government continues efforts to pare employment roles
and streamline programs.  Further reductions may prove more
difficult, but the government expects the sale of shares in state
enterprises to reduce the debt service on behalf of these ailing
businesses and to generate revenues sufficient to retire government
debt.
Portugal joined the European Community (EC) in January 1986.
Transition periods to bring Portuguese agricultural prices and tariffs
in line with those of other EC countries and to liberalize capital
movements generally will continue through the mid-1990s.  EC
structural adjustment assistance- about $650 million, net of
Portuguese contributions in 1988-and future flows will help the
Portuguese Government modernize its industry and agriculture.
Portugal's entry into the EC and the concomitant obligations to open
its markets and compete freely with its EC partners by the 1992
Single Market have been the primary stimulus for many of the recent
reforms and will continue to influence much of Portuguese economic
policy and business strategy.

Labor unions-before the revolution mainly instruments of government
policy-have become active, independent agents. Two major labor
confederations have emerged.  The oldest, the General
Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP-Intersindical), is
communist controlled.  In January 1979, the General Union of
Workers (UGT) was formed as the democratic alternative.  The UGT
has become a major force in the Portuguese labor movement and
has gained international respect.


FOREIGN RELATIONS

Portugal's foreign policy reflects the country's geographic, cultural,
and historic roots in the Western community and the determination
of the post-1974 elected governments to reinforce those bonds and
the democratic values they help sustain.  The government took a
major step in that direction by formally entering the European
Community in January 1986. A charter member of NATO, Portugal
seeks to modernize its armed forces to play an enhanced role in
alliance defense.

Five proud centuries of exploration have bequeathed to Portugal a
significant legacy of ties with Africa, the Western Hemisphere, and
Asia.  Since granting independence to the former overseas territories
of Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, and Sao Tome
and Principe, the Portuguese Government has made major efforts to
maintain and strengthen diplomatic, economic, and assistance
relationships with those nations.  In recent years, Portugal also has
sought to broaden diplomatic contacts with moderate Arab states in
order to lay the basis for expanded economic and commercial
relations.  Portugal maintains relations with Israel at the
ambassadorial level.

Following the 1974 revolution, Portugal opened relations with the
Soviet Union and East European communist regimes.  Trade and
cultural exchanges, however, remain at a low level.  As a NATO and
EC member, Portugal approaches East-West issues in the framework
of its own strong political, economic, and military ties to Western
Europe.

Portugal continues to administer the overseas territory of Macau,
near Hong Kong.  Portugal and China concluded an agreement on
April 13, 1987, to return the territory to Chinese rule in 1999.
Portugal and Indonesia broke relations on December 7, 1975,
because of a dispute over the status of Portuguese East Timor.
Indonesia then annexed East Timor in July 1976.  Portugal does not
recognize the annexation as an act of self-determination by the East
Timorese and has contested the Indonesian action in international
forums.  In 1982, the UN General Assembly asked the UN Secretary
General to consult with both governments in an effort to resolve the
issue;  both countries subsequently have held discussions under the
auspices of the Secretary General.

More than 2 million Portuguese reside in Europe, Africa, and the
Western Hemisphere as permanent emigrants or-particularly in the
case of Western Europe-as temporary workers.  Through cultural
and educational programs as well as diplomatic efforts, Portugal
seeks to maintain ties to these emigrant communities and to support
efforts by emigrant workers to secure adequate social benefits from
their host countries.


US-PORTUGUESE RELATIONS

Bilateral ties date from the earliest years of the United States. On
February 21, 1791, President George Washington opened formal
diplomatic relations between the two countries, naming Col. David
Humphreys as US Minister. Portugal's history of
looking toward the Atlantic, rather than toward continental Europe,
and the US position as an Atlantic power, have long brought the two
nations into close contact. Emigration has furthered this relationship,
and sizable Portuguese communities in the United States represent
a strong cultural bond.

The United States encourages a stable and democratic Portugal that
is closely associated with the industrial democracies of Western
Europe and NATO. Portugal's nearly bloodless transition from
authoritarian rule to constitutional democracy during 1974-76, the
exclusion of communists from its parliamentary governments, and its
excellent human rights record demonstrate the commitment of the
Portuguese to democratic values. The United States has supported
Portugal's successful entry into the West European economic and
defense mainstream.


US Economic and Developmental Aid
Since 1975, US economic assistance to Portugal managed by the
Agency for International Development (AID) has totaled $1.2 billion,
including refugee and disaster assistance, agriculture, schools and
rural education, health, low income housing and Housing Guaranties,
basic sanitation, consultants and training, balance of payments loans,
PL 480 loans and Economic Support Funds (ESF) cash transfers.

In fiscal year 1989, the program included disbursement of $50 million
in ESF and $25 million in previously authorized low-income Housing
Guaranty loans, as well as authorization of an additional $25 million
in new Housing Guaranties.  In addition, the USAID/Lisbon manages
grants funded in previous years for technical consultants and training
and supports trilateral cooperation with Portugal on assistance to
some African countries.  The last of the project activities directly
managed by USAID/Lisbon will be completed in December 1989.

The Government of Portugal has used ESF support, in part, to build
the endowment of the Luso-American Development Foundation to
promote and support enduring professional and institutional linkages
with the United States in education, science and technology, private
sector development, culture, public administration, and regional
development.  Since 1985, the foundation has received $110 million
and through 1988 had made grants, loans, and equity investments
in nearly 600 development projects.


DEFENSE

US-Portuguese defense cooperation traditionally has been excellent.
Under the 1951 bilateral defense agreement and subsequent
technical agreements, US Armed Forces enjoy access to the
Portuguese Air Base at Lajes in the Azores.  The United States,
together with other NATO allies, also provides security assistance to
Portugal.  This includes modern equipment and training to support
increased Portuguese participation in NATO defense.

In addition to US use of facilities at Lajes Air Base, Portugal also has
agreed in principle to accept a US satellite observation station in
southern Portugal.


Principal US Officials
Ambassador-Everett E. Briggs
Deputy Chief of Mission-John W. Penfold

Political Affairs-Jeffrey Millington
Economic Affairs-David Norman Miller
Consular Affairs-Arturo Macias
Administrative Affairs-Thomas  Widenhouse
Public Affairs (USIS)-Gail Gulliksen
Commercial Affairs-Carlos F. Poza
Agricultural Affairs-Daniel Berman
Agency for International Development- David C. Leibson
Military Attaches
Defense and Air-Col.Van C. Sanders
Army-Col. Robert G. Hasty
Navy-Capt. Richard J. Burns
Military Advisory Assistance Group (MAAG)
Chief-Col. Robert A. Young
Consuls
Oporto- Herbert Yarvin
Ponta Delgada-Mahlon Henderson

The US Embassy is located at  Avenida Forcas Armadas, Lisbon
1600 (tel. [phone]). The Oporto consulate is located at Rua Julio
Dinis 826, 3d Floor, Oporto 4000 (tel. 63094). The Ponta Delgada
Consulate is at Avenida Infante D. Henrique, Ponta Delgada, Sao
Miguel, Azores 9502 (tel. 22216). The consular agent in Funchal,
Madeira is Antonio Drummond Borges (tel. 47429).

Travel Notes
Entry requirements:  A visa is not required of US citizens for stays of
up to 60 days, but a valid passport is necessary. Immunizations are
not mandatory. Travelers may import or export foreign currency in
any amount, provided it is for "touristic purposes." No more than
5,000 Portuguese escudos per traveler may be imported into
Portugal, although up to 25,000 escudos may be exported.

Climate and clothing:  Wear summer clothing during the temperate
sunny days and cool nights May-September. Fall-weight clothing and
a topcoat or warm raincoat are appropriate for winter. A rainhat or
umbrella is recommended.


Health:  Health and sanitation standards generally are good.
Tapwater is potable year round in large cities and in outlying areas
during rainy seasons. Bottled spring water is available.

Telecommunications:  Telephone and telegraph circuits are available
to Western Europe and to almost all other points worldwide.  Lisbon
is five time zones ahead of eastern standard time.  AT&T card
services are available through Marconi Operators.  AT&T cards can
only be used for calls to the United States.


Transportation:  Direct flights are available from the United States,
and worldwide connections are good.  Domestic air services fly to
Oporto in the north, Faro in the Algarve, and to several other
provincial cities.  Railroads and buses serve the entire country.
Lisbon has good, inexpensive taxi, bus, streetcar, and subway
service.

National holidays: The US Embassy and Consulates are closed on
the following holidays:  January l (New Year's), February 7 (Carnival),
March 24 (Good Friday), April 25 (Liberty Day), May l (Labor Day),
May 25 (Corpus Christi), June l0 (Portugal Day), June l3 (St.
Anthony's Day-only in Lisbon), August l5 (Assumption Day), October
5 (Portuguese Republic), November l (All Saint's Day), December l
(Portuguese Independence), December 8 (Immaculate Conception),
December 25 (Christmas Day).


US Economic Assistance
($ millions by year authorized)
                FY 1984   1985  1986 1987  1988 1989

Economic Support Funds    20     40    80   77    32   50
Housing Guaranty Loans    14     11    25   25     -   25


US Defense Assistance
($millions)
                                                                      FY 1982-84
1985    1986   1987   1988   1989

Military Assistance Program (grant)                   117.5           70
    67      80        80        -
International Military
   Education and Training Program (grant)            7.4            2.9
   2.3     2.6       2.6      2.6
Foreign Military Sales Credits (loan)                 142.5             55
  43.1      -        2.5      100*

*Forgiven Foreign Military Sales loan

Further Information
These titles are provided as a general indication of the material
published on this country. The Department of State does not
endorse unofficial publications.


Buneau, Thomas C.  Politics and Nation   hood: Post- Revolutionary
Portugal.  New York:  Praeger, 1984.

de Macedo, Jorge, and Simon Sarfaty, eds.  Portugal Since The
Revolution:  Economic and Political Perspectives. Boulder, Colo.:
Westview Press, 1981.

Gallagher, Tom. Portugal: A Twentieth-Century Interpretation. Dover,
N.H.: Manchester University Press, 1982.

Graham, Lawrence F., and Harry M. Makler, eds. Contemporary
Portugal: The Revolution and its Antecedents. Austin: University of
Texas Press, 1979.

Graham, Lawrence F., and Douglas L. Wheeler, eds.  In Search of
Modern Portugal:  The Revolution and its Consequences.  Madison:
University of Wisconsin Press, 1983.

Kay, Hugh.  Salazar and Modern Portugal.  New York: Hawthorn
Books, 1970.

Marques, A. H. de Oliveira. History of Portugal. New York:  Columbia
University Press, 1972.

Payne, Stanley G.  A History of Spain and Portugal. 2 vols.  Madison:
University of Wisconsin Press, 1972.

Porch, Douglas.  The Portuguese Armed Forces and the Revolution.
Stanford, Calif.:  Hoover Institution Press, 1977.

Robinson, Richard Allen H. Contemporary Portugal. Boston: Allen
and Unwin, Inc., 1979.


Available from the Superintendent of Documents, US Government
Printing Office, Washington, DC  20402:

US Department of Labor.  Foreign Labor Trends.

US Department of State.  Key Officers of Foreign Service Posts.



Published by the United States Department of State --  Bureau of
Public Affairs  -- Office of  Public Communication -- Washington, DC
-- May 1990 --  Editor:  Juanita Adams. Department of State
Publication 8074--Background Notes Series  -- This material is in the
public domain and may  be reprinted without permission; citation of
this source is appreciated.For sale by the Superintendent of
Documents, US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC
20402.