"The behaviour of the minister has been characterized by a lack of respect towards the military," said General Jose Loureiro dos Santos as he read the joint statement to reporters.

"The difficult situation of the army has worsened, which can put at risk missions abroad," he added, in comments broadcast Friday on state radio Antenna 1.

The statement was issued exactly one week after General Jose Manuel da Silva Viegas announced he had resigned as chief of general command of the army, a position he had occupied since March 2001, because he no longer had confidence in Defence Minister Paulo Portas.

The former army chiefs prepared their joint statement after a meeting Thursday with Viegas where they heard the reasons which led to his resignation. They refused to answer questions from reporters after reading the statement.

It was the first time that all eight generals who have occupied the position of head of the armed forces since Portugal emerged from a rightist dictatorship in 1974 had issued a joint statement.

Viegas told reporters on his way into the meeting that a variety of incidents had led him to lose confidence in Portas, who is also head of the Popular Party, a right-wing partner in the government coalition.

"Losing confidence in a minister is not the same as losing a coin purse," he said.

"It is the result of a series of facts which probably on their own would not justify my resignation but taken together do."

The centre-right government has yet to announce a replacement for Viegas.

Portas has been criticized for not doing enough to improve the conditions of the nation's military, which is struggling with ageing equipment.

Last year the defence minister canceled an order for new military helicopters and he has put off a decision to buy new submarines for the navy as part of government belt-tightening measures.

Portas, who campaigned as a champion of the causes of military veterans, has also put off the fulfillment of a promise to award all soldiers who served in Portugal's colonial wars in Africa a pension.

The minister testified as a witness in June for over six hours in an embezzlement trial involving financial links between a private university and a company he once ran.

Portas was called to answer questions about the relationship between Moderna University and a polling institution it finances, which he managed in

At stake was Portas' alleged use of university funds for political and private gains.

Thirteen former members of the management of Moderna University, including the former rector, face charges of criminal association, fraudulent management, fraud, forging documents and bribery.

The opposition Socialists and Communists have in the past demanded that Portas step down, at least while the Moderna embezzlement scandal is being investigated.

WAR.WIRE