The Portuguese military "are there to effectively fulfill a training mission that is currently suspended.

"We are now, and in the coming weeks, in close consultation with our allies and partners to see if there are conditions to resume the training. If there are not, there is no basis for the mission to continue and, in that case, they will return”.

If it is possible to resume training, the Portuguese military will continue with its mission in Iraq.

"At the moment there is some volatility and uncertainty. We will wait until the situation stabilizes so that we can take a decision", he underlined.

Without advancing dates, João Gomes Cravinho said the decision may take approximately one or two weeks.