It becomes more and more clear that the Greek government is up to an intermediate agreement with its creditors in June and another one, a comprehensive to be reached in autumn.
When asked about the option of an interim agreement, government spokesman Gavriil Sakellaridis said on Monday morning while briefing reporters.
“We speak of a unified agreement, unified terms and unified prerequisites. We are not talking about timely broken terms. There should be an agreement that it should be ratified with certain terms now and then in September we go into a new agreement with new terms.“
The interim agreement option would allow both sides to gain time and proceed with the negotiations in order to find a realistic and a sustainable solution to the Greek problem. It would also allow Greece to receive a financial injection by the creditors’ like €9-10 billion from the EFSF’s banks recapitalization assets to meet its summer obligations to the IMF and the ECB.
Again and again, Greece has put on the table the “debt restructuring issue.” which the European creditors’ ( i.e. Germany) vehemently reject, while the IMF seems to be in favor of.
Sakellaridis dismissed any early elections scenarios and rumors saying that the Greek PM has made it clear that this government will fulfill its four-year term. “Elections are not in our plans,” Sakellaridis said, even though some SYRIZA officials see early elections as an option to renew the public mandate that will allow the government to proceed with even radical solutions like “rift with the creditors.”
The intermediate agreement is the most moderate option scenario for Greece right now, taking into consideration the creditors’ tough austerity proposals as handed out by Juncker to Tsipras last week.
The best scenario would be a comprehensive agreement by June but the creditors should step back from absurd demands like cutting the benefits for the poor or raise the Value Added Tax for electricity to 23%.
The worst scenario would be a rift with the creditors at whatever the cost. Neither the Greek government nor the creditors want that.
Getting over the summer hopefully will strengthen Greeks and Greece’ position with a fresh injection of tourist money.
Because of this one can expect a smear campaign by German media to sabotage the tourism sector.
But who knows may be Greece gets stormed by tourists this summer when nobody has to fear exchange problems any more or empty money machines. The Euro low means lots of Americans will come and many diaspora Greeks can afford it to travel, some of them the first time ever.
Besides that, remenber that there are elections in Portugal in October and Spain in November. In both cases the traitor governments that viciously oppose Greece and Syriza will be kikcked out. Furthermore, in Spain there is a great chance that “Popular unity lists” centered on PODEMOS (but including other parties and social movements) will win the elections.
THis developments might not bring “Syriza” friendly governments in Spain and Portugal, but at least, they will not be viciously against like now.
The creditors (particularly, Juncker) emphasized that they do not demand “cutting the benefits for the poor” as far as the Greek government provides an alternative way to save the same amount of money elsewhere. The question is: Is there such an opportunity? I would think the answer is No, otherwise it would have been on the table already. However, others on this discussion forum, who are more knowledgeable on Greek politics and economics might be able to correct me.
we have 47-page Greeks’ proposals vs 5+7-page creditors’ proposals. Do you believe anyone read 59 pages of proposals?
I am certain someone read the proposals, but did not like the content (either the resulting number was not what they were seeking, or the components were not credible/acceptable).
Junker said he never received any, may be the messenger got hit by truck and is now courier-pizza?
Unable to reform, Greece resorts to kicking the can down the road for a few more months…
While the debt is piling up higher every day, investors bypass it large scale and the reputation of Greece in the world hits rock bottom.
Btw: Portugal paid back the IMF ahead of schedule and they return to private financing markets. – Auterity obviously worked for them. – Are they smarter or more talented than the Greeks?
the Portuguese are so happy about their IMF Success Story they will probably kick the can down the streets together with their government
The new government made more reforms in 4 months than the old in 3 years.
I guess a language reform is necessary in Krautland:
German words are often Orwellian wrong, like “Kita” for “Kindergarten” (now English, not German any more) or “costumer” for unemployed but really crazy is that they call employer “Arbeitgeber” (someone who gives work) and workers “Arbeitnehmer” (someone who takes work), Karl Marx would try to turn upside down, as the worker gives work and the boss sucks it.
Success stories like decrease in unemployment statistics come from the hundreds of thousands leaving their countries.
Varoufakis: “Austerity for Iberians was 3 times less than for Greece”
One year after the haircut everything is forgotten. New Game, New luck! The creditors will happily come back
the operators of travel are being asked to provide insurance against grexit
Portuguese government in charge (2011-2015) blackmailed everybody in the elections of 2011: There will be no money to pay public employees and pensioners next month. Can anyone take the outcome of this as “an expression of the people’s free will”?
Eech time we gives in to a blackmail, our situation can only get worse. That’s what happened: depth has grown 21% of GDP. Can anyone believe such a decision comes from smart guys? Wise? As a Portuguese I would rather say criminals.
we had the same problem here every time before 2012 +2015 + EP elections: scaremongering if opposition gets the votes.