At a meeting between the heads of the Portuguese and German governments, which was held by videoconference, António Costa wrote that there was agreement on "the importance of maintaining a high rate of vaccination and of putting the instruments for economic and social recovery on the ground".

Portugal took over its fourth Presidency of the Council of the EU on 1 January, which will run for the first half of 2021, succeeding Germany and preceding Slovenia, under the slogan "Time to act: for a fair, green and digital recovery".