Saturday, January 31, 2015

Merkel says no debt reduction for Athens

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said there should be no debt relief for Greece adding to tensions between the new anti-austerity government and its international creditors...
"There has already been voluntary debt forgiveness by private creditors, banks have already slashed billions from Greece's debt," Ms Merkel told the Hamburger Abendblatt newspaper.

"I do not envisage fresh debt cancellation."

"Europe will continue to show its solidarity with Greece, as with other countries hard hit by the crisis if these countries carry out reforms and cost-saving measures," Ms Merkel said.

Greece opened talks on its bailout with European partners yesterday by refusing to extend the programme or to cooperate with the international inspectors overseeing it.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' government also sacked the heads of the state privatisation agency after halting a series of state asset sales.

The politically unpopular policy of privatisation to help cut debt is one of the conditions of Greece's €240 billion bailout that has imposed years of harsh austerity on Greece.

Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis met Jeroen Dijsselbloem, head of the eurozone finance ministers' group, for what both men described as "constructive" talks.

But Greek media seized on signs of frosty body language between them and the hour-long meeting appeared to do nothing to bridge the gap between them.

The meeting marks the start of Athens' drive to persuade its creditors to ease the strict terms of the bailout.

It precedes planned visits by Mr Tsipras and Mr Varoufakis to London, Paris and Rome in the coming days.
 http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0131/676873-greece-bailout/
31/1/15
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1 comment :

  1. On Saturday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejected the prospect of debt relief for Athens, according to an AFP report...

    "There has already been voluntary debt forgiveness by private creditors, banks have already slashed billions from Greece’s debt," the agency quotes Merkel as saying in an interview with the newspaper Hamburger Abendblatt, which was published Saturday. "I do not envisage fresh debt cancellation."

    In an interview with the German television station ARD on Thursday, European Commission Chief Jean-Claude Juncker also said a reduction of Greece’s bailout debts "is not on the radar."...............http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150131/1017583334.html#ixzz3QOSFwrHt
    31/1/15

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