Greece agrees to present new economic reforms
Greece’s hard-left government has agreed to present a new list of reforms aimed at restoring the economic rescue program it has been offered by lenders.
In line with the European Union (EU)-International Monetary Fund (IMF) program, Athens has received two bailouts since 2012 in exchange for economic reforms. Since its rise to power in January, however, the new government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has shown much aversion to austerity, alienating lenders and jeopardizing the chances of the country being bailed out again.
Tsipras held crunch talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and the EU's top officials on the sidelines of a summit in Brussels on Friday. The meeting led to an agreement on the resumption of economic reformation in the country in exchange for the bailout falling back on track.
A statement issued after the meeting said the attendees had agreed to finish work "as fast as possible" on completing Greece's so-called EU-IMF rescue program to free up crucial funds to help Athens avoid bankruptcy and a catastrophic exit from the euro.
"Greek authorities will have the ownership of the reforms and will present a full list of specific reforms in the next days," said the statement.
"The Greek prime minister declared that he is willing to present such a list and that he will do so quickly," Merkel told a press conference.
The bailout is valued at EUR 240 billion (USD 270 billion) in total. Athens wants the final seven-billion-euro tranche of the money to be paid out now to stay afloat.
Tsipras has warned that Greece faces a "humanitarian crisis" if it does not get some of the cash.
HN/NN/HMV
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