Mini Summit EZ-IMF on Greece in Berlin: What are they up to?

The finance ministers of Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands, as well as representatives of the EU and the ECB and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will meet in Berlin on Friday to talk about Greece. However, the Greek finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos has not been invited to participate.

According to German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung, the eurozone finance ministers will explore the possibilities on how the IMF can participate in the Greek program.

So far, the International Monetary Fund has been refusing to participate in the Greek program, insisting on Debt Relief  and “sustainable debt”- a precondition that Wolfgang Schaeuble followed by his Dutch counterpart and Eurogroup head Jeroen Dijsselbloem have  been vehemently rejecting.

Citing sources of the “institutions”, Financial Times reports that the IMF will wait first for the second program review to conclude and then to discuss its participation in the Greek program.

It is clear that the ‘Mini Summit” in Berlin aims in the formation of a common stance towards Athens before the next Eurogroup on December 5th, where Greece expects the begin of discussion about the Debt Relief.

However: Supposed they all – Schaeuble incl – agree in Berlin to start Debt Relief discussion. The big question is: what will they demand from Athens in return?

Knowing Schaeuble, I wouldn’t be surprised if he will push for a  fourth Austerity Program with new measures, while he will pull out of his desk drawer that old dusty file named “Grexit”.

UPDATE:

The German Finance Ministry did not confirm the summit, in fact it said on Wednsday that no such summit is scheduled, no need to, no crisis situation to justify such a summit – via state broadcaster ERT

PS  did I waste 20 minutes of my life and several thousands brain cells to write 242 words about a non existing issue? Possible. However, SZ is a serious newspaper and there must have been a reason for its ‘sources’ to leak such a news.