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Eurogroup slams the door on Greece

27 June 2015 / 19:06:16  GRReporter
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The atmosphere before Eurogroup’s extraordinary meeting in Brussels was incandescent.

Its chairman, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, did not hide his displeasure and qualified the Greek government’s decision to call a referendum as ‘sad’. In parallel, he expressed his opinion that the decision closes the door on any further discussion. "I was unpleasantly surprised by the recent decision of the Greek government. Obviously, it rejects the current proposal of the three institutions. On this negative base, they proposed a referendum with negative advice to the Greeks. This is a sad decision which closed the door on further discussions. To my mind that door is still open. We are going to hear from the Greek minister of finance and discuss the consequences afterwards," Dijsselbloem said before the meeting.

Eurozone finance ministers now have to determine the request by the Greek government for a few days' extension of the bailout programme. It stands little chance of being approved. The implication is that the current bailout will be up on 1 July, and there will be no more cash injections for Greece.

From this point on, the so-called Plan B will set off, designed to administrate the country's bankruptcy and exit from the euro.

German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said Greece seems determined to put an end to the discussions: "There is no room for further debate", he said, but added that surprises are never excluded as far as Greece is concerned.

Meanwhile, Greek finance minister Yannis Varoufakis is, according to Reuters, seeking an extension of the programme by several weeks to cover the referendum. He says that paying the 30 June instalment is up to the creditors’ flexibility.

The Greek finance minister says his government is committed to implementing the referendum’s outcome and reaching a fast agreement with creditors in its spirit.

Varoufakis also wants the European Commission to recover €1.9 billion of ECB's profit from Greek bonds: this will enable Greece’s payment to the IMF on Tuesday.

Varoufakis believes that Greek banks should be able to remain open throughout the transition period and that this is for the ECB to ensure.

No meeting took place between the Deputy Prime Minister, Yannis Dragasakis, and the ECB chief, Mario Draghi. It is not known whether it will be held after the Eurogroup meeting, in which Draghi will take part.

Sources say that many Eurozone finance ministers have spoken for suspension of the Greek bailout.

The EuroWorking Group also failed to support the Greek side’s request for a short extension of the programme.

Eurogroup’s meeting was interrupted around 6 PM - temporarily, according to reports. It is expected to resume later on – without Varoufakis.

Expect further details.

Tags: Eurogroup meeting Jeroen Dijsselbloem
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