Portugal is “doing better” than Greece, but “there should be no illusions: if there is another crisis, both Portugal and Greece will suffer more”.
Despite having different historical trajectories, Portugal and Greece share a similar population and economic dimension and, for the professor at the Lusófona University of Lisbon, Antônio Costa Pintoare the countries that will “suffer the most” in the scenario of a new European crisis.
“It is true that Portugal is doing better than Greece on many indicators, but the difference is small“, says the researcher from the UL Institute of Social Sciences, in an interview with the Greek newspaper.
“Neither Portugal nor Greece have changed their position much in the center-periphery relationship with the EU. The fact that Portugal has a better international profile is related to its democracy and geographical location, far from wars, terrorism, major migratory routes, etc.”
The issues common to both countries were debated this month at a conference in Athens, entitled “Global crisis and democratic transition in Southern Europe: a political history”, organized by the Hellenic Parliament Foundation.
“In strictly financial terms, there was an ‘here’, both from the PSD and the PS, after the ‘great recession’ and the intervention of the IMF: fiscal discipline and fiscal balance”, says the political scientist, but “there should be no illusions: if there is another crisis, both Portugal and Greece will suffer more“, he assured, when asked if he believes that the two countries can return to putting on the fiscal “straitjacket” that the IMF brought them in 2010 and 2011.
