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This article was published on February 6, 2015 at 06:36.
negotiation on time
Behind the apparent hard line Greece is trying
to obtain a bridge loan to take out a new ‘contract’ with the creditors
NEXT STEPS
Completed the first phase
of bilateral meetings,
the matter moves at EU level with the Eurogroup and then with
The summit of the leaders February 12
FRANKFURT
In total disagreement on everything. The German finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, and his colleague greek Yanis Varoufakis were sitting a few feet away from each other at a press conference in Berlin, but their conve could not have been further away.
“We agree to disagree,” said Schäuble, but Varoufakis not wanted to grant even that. “We have not reached an agreement because he had never been in the program that we did,” said the economist greek after the visit to his counterpart in the German capital.
Schäuble held the line that is expected by the German government in Athens must continue to deal with the Troika (European Commission, European Central Bank and the IMF), with which the new government however refuses to have anything to do; made during the election campaign promises “unrealistic when they are at the expense of others, and that” not necessarily going in the right direction, “as reverse decisions already taken on the basis of the program agreed with creditors; debt have already been made all the concessions possible in 2012. “We help only those who help themselves”, said Schäuble. “We must respect the Greek voters, but also those of other European countries.”
Varoufakis asked above all time. Greece does not want to extend, as requested by the European partners, the economic program which expires on 28 February next and want to present their proposals and a plan of the bridge loan until the end of May, so you can get to an agreement. Today, however, speaks of the new “contract” with the creditors, instead of the program, a semantic difference that seems to aim mostly to save face. The greek minister pointed out that the new government does not dispute the 60-70% of the previous reforms agreed by the executive, but wants to put more emphasis on the fight against corruption and to annuities. According Varoufakis, policies SYRIZA scare Europe because they come from a leftist party, but it can help to save her from the crisis.
The parties are far apart, as indeed was predictable. After the start of the European tour post-election and a general climate of support in capitals such as Paris and Rome and even the City of London, Varoufakis (and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who led a tour similar) collided with the reality: Wednesday, in Frankfurt, was received at the ECB, where Mario Draghi told him in practice that none of the proposals put forward by the new government immediately after the vote on the debt issue was feasible and where the evening the college council revoked the exemption that allowed Greek banks access to ECB liquidity by pledging government debt greek; and in Berlin yesterday.
Tsipras repeated more or less the same arguments of his minister, saying yesterday that Greece will not take more orders from anyone and that austerity is over once and for all. French President François Hollande advised him to go to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel, but the meeting might be a replica of the one between the finance ministers of the two countries. Meanwhile, Prime Minister greek has phoned with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who invited him to Moscow. In discussion, the possible cooperation in the economic field, although Tsipras has denied wanting to accept funds from Russia to meet its foreign debt.
At the Berlin government does not like to be seen as the main party of Greece and it is also why Schäuble insisted once again on the troika, although it is possible that in the coming months this formula die of a sort of natural death, given that the European Court of Justice would confirm the opinion of its general advocacy, according which the ECB has to stand out from the troika, and the IMF – that yesterday in Athens reiterated the need to move forward with the program – but in turn is not comfortable in a subordinate position against the Europeans and still experience and resources to manage their loan programs independently.
Completed the first phase of bilateral contacts, the Greek case now moves on the European scene. Will be the meeting of the Eurogroup, the finance ministers of euro area countries, and the leaders of the European Union, scheduled for February 12 next, having to lay the foundations of the relationship between Athens and its partners, relationship, from the premises, promises anything but easy.
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