History Article
Close
This article was published June 2, 2015 at 7:45.
The last change is the June 2, 2015 at 16:44.
BRUSSELS – A few days before the deadline for the repayment of a loan from the International Athens, Greece’s creditors are trying to get the government to accept Tsipras new economic policy measures in order to avoid bankruptcy, in a very difficult financial environment. Despite progress in the negotiations – which last for five months and they depend on new financial aid – the game remains extremely uncertain, partly because the tones between the parties remain tense.
In an effort to unblock the negotiations, creditors are preparing a draft agreement for submission to the greek government, an EU official explained yesterday: “We hope to finish it within the week.” The decision to anticipate the times and to develop their own plan was made by the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund before the difficulties of the Greek negotiators to “define their proposals, also considering their impact.”
The negotiators of the three institutions met yesterday evening in Berlin, in the presence of Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President François Hollande and the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, all three in town for a conference . At the meeting were also invited ECB President Mario Draghi and IMF managing director Christine Lagarde, with the aim to discuss the terms of an offer to be submitted to Greece.
“The participants in the talks agreed that the work should continue with real intensity, “said a spokesman for the German government at the end of the talks in last night. “The participants have remained in close contact in recent days and intend to remain in close contact in the coming days, both among themselves and with the government greek”. The talks ended after midnight and were held in the Federal Chancellery.
At the same time, in parallel, the technical negotiations between the parties continue, but with great difficulty. In addition to the problems to solve, the three institutions have different visions. The IMF is giving battle against the budget, demanding efforts that Athens considered too burdensome. “There have been intensive discussions over the weekend. Progress has been made, but still not enough – he explained yesterday morning Mina Andreeva, spokesman of the Community executive -. The Commission wants to be a mediator. “
Also yesterday from Berlin, before talks evening at the top of the chancellor’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, he had stated that Greece has to accept” an ambitious reform package. ” The spokesman of the Ministry of Finance, Martin Jäger, was equally clear: “The aim of the measures is to restore debt sustainability in the greek”. Prime Minister greek is obvious anguish, caught between the demands of its creditors, the needs of the national budget, and the promises made to his constituents and followers.
The feelings here in Brussels are mixed. On the one hand increases the feeling that only a hiccup can shake the negotiations with Greece. On the other, there is a desire not to reach this point, and then here is that the institutions are trying to make each other a proposed agreement to be presented in Athens, in order to unblock the negotiations. Unfortunately, the two roads are not mutually exclusive, if Greece were to reject the plan developed by the Commission, the ECB and the IMF.
This month, Greece owes its international creditors 1 6 billion euro. A first repayment is expected at the end of the week. The deadlines come at a very difficult time, while the country is at risk of a liquidity squeeze. The latest statistics show dramatic new fuoriscite bank deposits. Creditors are willing to provide additional financial support to Athens (in dance there are 7.2 billion from the current economic program expiring at the end of the month).
In return, however, the same as creditors require new policy measures, on which the greek government is recalcitrant. In an article published by Le Monde, the same Tsipras has called “absurd” the demands of the institutions. The politician, who attributed the difficulties of an agreement intransigence of partners, seemed to target especially the IMF. The nodes are at least three: the budgetary targets, the reform of the labor market, the revision of the pension system.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Permalink
No comments:
Post a Comment