Friday 27 July 2012


Greece PM Antonis Samaras in tough bailout talks

Antonis Samaras (R) with European Commission President Jose Manuel BarrosoMr Barroso (L) told the Greek prime minister the government had to deliver reform
Greek PM Antonis Samaras is meeting international creditors to try to persuade them that Athens deserves its final instalment of bailout money.
The EU, IMF and European Central Bank (ECB) are studying Greece's finances before deciding whether to hand over 31.5bn euros ($38bn; £24.5bn).
Without the funds, Greece would face bankruptcy and probably leave the euro.
Mr Samaras said on Thursday that the government would do all it could to get Greece back on track.
The government is preparing a two-year, 11.7bn euro cost-cutting plan, reportedly through further reductions in pension, benefits and healthcare spending.
Patience 'wearing thin'
On Friday the European Commission gave "temporary" approval to state aid that injected 18bn euros into four struggling Greek banks - Alpha Bank, EFG Eurobank, Piraeus Bank and National Bank of Greece.
But the Commission said it was still investigating the aid, to ensure compliance with EU rules. The aid plugged a hole in the banks' finances caused when private bondholders agreed to write off 107bn euros of Greek debt.
After talks with Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, Mr Samaras said Greece's three-party coalition had decided to press ahead with measures such as privatisation and changes to the public sector.

Crisis jargon buster
Use the dropdown for easy-to-understand explanations of key financial terms:
Troika
The term used to refer to the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund - the three organisations charged with monitoring Greece's progress in carrying out austerity measures as a condition of bailout loans provided to it by the IMF and by other European governments. The bailout loans are being released in a number of tranches of cash, each of which must be approved by the troika's inspectors.
Mr Barroso said he had been assured that the government would speed up key structural reforms such as tackling tax evasion. But he said the main issue was in the delivery of results.
"Words are not enough. Actions are much more important," he said.
The BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens says Mr Samaras will attempt to reassure the international lenders, known as the troika.
But the troika's patience is wearing thin, our correspondent says, as Greece is behind schedule in reducing its deficit.
Greece held two general elections in May and June as the country's politicians struggled to form a government.
But after two international bailouts worth 100bn euros and then 130bn euros, there is widespread scepticism that Athens will be able to meet the commitments made to secure the agreements.
On Tuesday, Mr Samaras declared that the country's economy was expected to contract by 7% in 2012, more than the 5% previously forecast by the Greek central bank.            ΒΒC

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1 comment:

  1. Δίδουμε και τα ρέστα και ξεμπερδεύουμε. Αραγε πως να νοιώθουν οι αμέσως επηρεαζόμενοι?

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