Thursday, September 17, 2015

New Greek Government Will Toe Bailout Line, At Least for Now


Reuters, 17/09 20:05 CET

By Lefteris Papadimas

ATHENS (Reuters) – European unease that Greece may falter on its bailout promises after elections on Sunday looks misplaced, at least initially, as its pressing need for money means that whoever wins is likely to toe the line.

Both leftist Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras and conservative New Democracy rival Vangelis Meimarakis, who are running neck-and-neck in opinion polls, have said that if elected they will push on with the fiscal reforms demanded by Greece’s creditors.

But euro zone creditor governments remain wary. Germany stressed on Wednesday that the new government would be bound by all the terms and timeframes in the bailout agreement.

“We have formulated clear conditions that must be fulfilled and they apply to any future government,” finance ministry spokesman Martin Jaeger told a news conference in Berlin.

Both party leaders know that if they fall short, Greece will face problems this autumn when the creditors are due to make their first review of progress under the 86-billion-euro ($96.5 billion) programme which Tsipras, as prime minister, accepted in July.

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Source: Euronews

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