"We are a country of emigrants and immigrants and this is a valuable mark of our culture and society", said Augusto Santos Silva, in a publication on his official account on Twitter.

In the video that accompanies the message, the president of parliament stated that Portugal needs to "do much more", both in supporting Portuguese emigrants abroad and in welcoming immigrants living in Portugal.

"But we have done a lot and we stand out internationally in what we do and that is what we, today, International Migrants Day, must underline", he defended.

The speaker of parliament recalled that Portugal has been "a country of emigrants for many centuries", saying that the number of those born in Portugal and living in another country for more than a year is around 2.5 million, using the United Nations criteria.

"We are many Portuguese and descendants of Portuguese who live in virtually every country in the world and these are part of Portugal, all of them", he stressed.

On the other hand, the second figure of the State stressed that Portugal is "increasingly a country of immigrants"."

"Almost 700,000 foreign people live in Portugal today and we are characterized by welcoming these people very well, we are internationally considered one of the countries most receptive to migration, one of the countries that best welcomes and best integrates foreigners", he said.