Greece has agreed to talk to its creditors about the way out of its hated international bailout in a political climbdown that could prevent its new leftist-led government running out of money as early as next month.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, attending his first European Union summit, agreed with the chairman of euro zone finance ministers, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, that Greek officials would meet representatives of the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the IMF tomorrow.
«(We) agreed today to ask the institutions to engage with the Greek authorities to start work on a technical assessment of the common ground between the current programme and the Greek government’s plans,» Dijsselbloem tweeted. This, he said, would pave the way for crucial talks between euro zone finance ministers on Monday.
The shift by Tsipras marked a potential first step towards resolving a crisis that has raised the risk of Greece, where the bloc’s debt crisis began in 2009, being forced to abandon the euro, sparking wider financial turmoil.
«All these discussions and today’s developments signal the intention for a political agreement,» the 40-year-old leftist leader, swept to power last month on a wave of anti-austerity protest, told reporters.
Tsipras set out his vision of ending austerity and reviving the economy to fellow leaders but there was no negotiation and they agreed it was for finance ministers to deal with the detailed technical issues.
Dijsselbloem was cautious about prospects for a deal, telling reporters: «It is going to be very difficult. It is going to take time. Don’t get your hopes up yet.»
On Wednesday night, euro zone finance ministers had failed to agree even on a statement on the next procedural steps because Athens did not want any reference to the unpopular bailout, nor to the despised «troika» of lenders enforcing it.
Though he will be negotiating with the EU, ECB and IMF, Tsipras said the «troika» no longer existed. He won election promising to scrap the 240 billion euro ($273 billion) bailout, end cooperation with the «troika», reverse austerity measures that have cast many Greeks into poverty and negotiate a reduction in the country’s huge debt burden.
The procedural step forward came after the ECB’s Governing Council extended a cash lifeline for Greek banks for another week, authorising an extra 5 billion euros in emergency lending assistance (ELA) by the Greek central bank. The council decided in a telephone conference to review the programme on February 18.
Timing the review right after euro zone finance ministers meet again next week keeps Athens on a short leash.
The ECB authorised the temporary funding expedient for banks last week when it stopped accepting Greek government bonds in return for liquidity.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, vilified by the Greek left as Europe’s «austerity queen», said Berlin was ready for a compromise and finance ministers had a few more days to consider Greece’s proposals before next Monday’s meeting.
«However, it must also be said that Europe’s credibility naturally depends on us respecting rules and being reliable with each other,» she said.
The two leaders came face to face for the first time in the EU Council chamber. Merkel said she congratulated Tsipras on his election and said she hoped for good cooperation despite the difficulties. Tsipras reciprocated briefly but they had no private meeting during the one-day summit.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald