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Spain FM sees 'real risk' of Greece eurozone exit

Spain Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo (AFP PHOTO)

Spain's minister of foreign affairs and cooperation has warned that Greece runs a "real risk" of exiting the eurozone as talks between Athens and its international creditors hit a standstill.

"There is a real risk …. [The exit] would not be good for Europe, and of course, it would be bad for the Greek people," José Manuel García-Margallo y Marfil said on Monday.

The Spanish official's remarks came after Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said Athens was counting on its international lenders to offer better terms and to be more “realistic.”

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras (AFP PHOTO)

 

But eurozone economic heavyweight, Germany, advised  bankrupt Greece to make an acceptable offer to its lenders instead of expecting the latter to do so.

 "The ball is in Greece's court," a German finance ministry spokesman said, warning that "time is running out."

Greece and its international creditors have been in talks to reach a deal over the Greek debt for months. Eurozone finance ministers are scheduled to meet on June 18 in what many see as the final deadline for a solution to the Greece debt crisis.

The troika of international lenders - International Monetary Fund (IMF), European Commission and the European Central Bank - say they have already made "major concessions" to Greece.

Greece is forced to repay 1.6 billion euros ($1.8 billion) to the IMF by the end-of-the-month deadline if it wants to remain in the eurozone and receive the last 7.2-billion-euro tranche of Greece's 240-billion-euro bailout, which expires on June 30.

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