EUROZONE-GREECE/TALKS UPDATE New Greek bailout could be reached 'soon' - Finance Minister

Record ID: 144542

  • Title: EUROZONE-GREECE/TALKS UPDATE New Greek bailout could be reached 'soon' - Finance Minister
  • Date: 10th August 2015
  • Summary: ATHENS, GREECE (AUGUST 10, 2015) (REUTERS) THE HILTON HOTEL, VENUE FOR TALKS BETWEEN GREECE AND INTERNATIONAL CREDITORS, WITH GLASS SCULPTURE OF 'THE RUNNER' IN FOREGROUND GREEK ECONOMIC MINISTER GEORGE STATHAKIS EMERGING FROM HOTEL AND STEPPING INTO CAR PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE GREEK AND EUROPEAN UNION FLAGS STATHAKIS WALKING UP STEPS AND ENTERING PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE D
  • Embargoed: 25th August 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Greece
  • Country: Greece
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA1RQT7L7GZDG1M0Z49CCUWL7F5
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Greece and international creditors on Monday (August 10) were in the final stretch of putting finishing touches to a multi-billion euro bailout accord to keep the country financially afloat and meet an important debt repayment to the European Central Bank within days.
    After marathon negotiation sessions on Sunday (August 9) and Monday, Greek ministers and representatives of European institutions and the International Monetary Fund paused their talks while Greek officials briefed Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.
    Greece is hoping to wrap up the deal for 86 billion euros ($94 billion) in fresh loans by Tuesday (August 11) so it can get parliamentary and other approvals for aid to flow by Aug. 20, when a debt repayment to the ECB is due.
    Leaving a meeting with Tsipras, Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos told reporters an agreement would be reached "soon".
    "We are continuing on the same path that we started. We are committed to the Brussels agreement, which as you know tired us for many hours. We are not backtracking from that agreement. We have discussions with the institutions that are going quite well. As you appreciate there will be questions, issues, which we need to discuss again and again, but I believe we can be optimistic that we will have an agreement soon," said Tsakalotos.
    He refused to comment on whether the agreement could be reached as early as tomorrow morning.
    Germany has set out "strict" conditions for further aid to Greece and said it would be sensible to link the size of the first tranche to Greece's progress in carrying out reforms, a reflection of worry around the eurozone that Athens might not do as promised.
    Germany on Monday stressed its wish for "quality before speed" in the negotiations, threatening to slow down the process as it pressed for strict conditions to be linked to aid.
    Asked about Germany stance in the negotiations, Tsakalotos said he hoped all sides would remain committed to the agreement.
    "I hope that all are in the spirit of that agreement and that they work equally hard, as we do, in order to clinch this deal," he said, before walking away to return for further talks with international creditors.
    Popular misgivings run deep in Germany, the eurozone country that has already contributed most to Greece's two bailouts since 2010, about funneling yet more money to Athens.
    Germany wants a deal that includes an ambitious budget plan, a credible privatisation strategy and a sustainable pension reform by Greece, Finance Ministry spokesman Juerg Weissgerber told a regular news conference in Berlin.
    An agreement would mark the end of a painful chapter on bailout talks for Greece, which fought against austerity terms demanded by creditors for much of the year before accepting a deal under the threat of being bounced out of the eurozone.
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