Portuguese prosecutors said Saturday they have opened a probe into the legality of the centre-right government's authorization of US use of the Lajes Air Base in the Azores during the Iran conflict.
The investigation follows a complaint by the opposition Left Bloc, which called the base's use a "gross violation of international law." A longstanding US-Portugal agreement allows Washington to use the base without prior authorization in peacetime, but requires approval once hostilities begin — and Portugal, unlike neighboring Spain, authorized several US transit flights.
On the other side: Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel has said Portugal was not involved in the conflict and that the base's use complied with international law — authorized only after US assurances that operations would be defensive, necessary, proportionate, and limited to military targets.