“For me it is an important relationship. Portugal is a member of NATO, a strong ally”, Randi Charno Levine told Lusa.

Recalling her opening speech and the “common values” between Portugal and the United States, the diplomat stressed that the two nations have found “a way” to support the same values ​​and “support the taste for democracy”.

“This is my opportunity, to help take relationships further and bring people from different platforms and communities together,” she added.

For Randi Charno Levine, her legacy as US ambassador to Portugal “will be to leave ties” – in business, government and politics.

About her first 10 weeks in office and living in Lisbon, the US ambassador said that her period in Portugal “has been extraordinary”.

A warm welcome

“In 10 weeks, I feel like I've been here for a year. The people are so welcoming… I have spent most of my time trying to get to know different groups of people: Government, Civil Society and the business sector,” she said.

“People have been so open and so welcoming that I feel very optimistic. I will be able to strengthen our relations and strengthen our partnerships between the Government, business and civil society, in cultural ties”, she added.

Randi Charno Levine was appointed ambassador to Portugal in November 2021 by the President of the United States, Joe Biden, having been unanimously confirmed in the US Senate in March and assumed office from April this year.

The philanthropist was also Commissioner of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., where she helped organise and expand the museum's permanent collection, chaired the Portrait of a Nation Gala in 2019, and revitalised the museum's corporate partnership program.