​​On May, 14th, 2021, a launching ceremony of the Atlantic Centre was held at the Air Base n. 4, at Lajes, Ilha Terceira Azores. A joint statement​ gathering 16 Atlantic nations around a common goal of developing the Atlantic Centre was reached, making the beginning of a new stage in this ambitious process. The aim is to establish an institution that will gather all Atlantic countries, premised on the objective of promoting political dialogue, analysis and research as well as capacity-building on security and defence.

Despite traveling restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, several signatories were represented at the event, namely Angola, Cabo Verde, France, Gambia, Senegal, Portugal, United Kingdom, United States of America, as well as partner organisations, including the UNODC, EMSA, Portuguese Space Agency, AIR Centre, National Defence Institute and Portugal Defence. The Autonomous Regional Government of Az​ores and the Portuguese Armed Forces, which are key partners in this project were also represented at the highest levels.

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Video: Launching Ceremony of the Atlantic Centre