Diogo Pinto de Freitas do Amaral (b. Póvoa de Varzim, 21 July 1941) is a Portuguese politician and law professor, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the country since 12 March 2005.
In 1974, some months after the Carnation Revolution, he was one of the founders of the Democratic and Social Centre, now the People's Party, a right-wing party with close (albeit unofficial) ties to the Roman Catholic Church.
Freitas served as foreign minister for the first time from 1980 to 1981. After the death of Francisco Sá Carneiro, Freitas do Amaral was interim Prime Minister for a short period.
He was a candidate for the presidency in the 1986 presidential election. Supported by his own People's Party and by the Social Democratic Party, he established a commanding lead in the first round, but lost the second round by some 150,000 votes to Mário Soares, who was endorsed by the three eliminated candidates.
A European federalist, he left the party he founded, disagreeing mainly with the Eurosceptic line followed by Manuel Monteiro and Paulo Portas.
He was President of the United Nations General Assembly in 1995.
Always seen as a right-winger, Freitas do Amaral supported the Social Democratic Party in the parliamentary election of 2002. However, disappointed with the government performance, and critical of its support for the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Freitas do Amaral surprised many observers by announcing his support for the Socialist Party in the 2005 election.
Freitas do Amaral was nominated for Minister of Foreign Affairs of the VXII Constitutional Government, led by the Socialist leader José Sócrates.
Note: in Portuguese, this politician is known as either Freitas do Amaral or simply Freitas, never Amaral.
Last updated: 06-06-2005 00:33:28
Last updated: 10-29-2005 02:13:46
