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"We will not allow anyone to drag us down with ultimatums and blackmailing," Greek government spokesman Gabriel Sakellaridis said after the unsuccessful outcome of last night's meeting of the euro zone finance ministers, adding that Tsipras’ government would not request an extension of the current bailout that would expire at the end of February, referring again to the vote of Greek voters.

In statements in a television broadcast, Sakellaridis pointed out, "It is not possible to present Greece with ultimatums in such a severe way, especially in the presence of a preparation for a different approach."

The government spokesman said once again that the Greek government "is neither bluffing nor playing poker with the country and the euro zone," adding, "now not only Athens but also Brussels is under pressure."

According to Sakellaridis, the Greek government took part in the negotiations ready to find compromise solutions.

Commenting on yesterday's statements by German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, who said he was sorry for the Greeks, Sakellaridis stressed, "We need to be careful when we make such statements in such a critical moment." According to him, Schaeuble’s words that the Greek cabinet behaved irresponsibly were not "a responsible position."

Sakellaridis was clear that the failed negotiations with the lenders would pose no problems to the funding of Greek banks. He pointed out that the government was in contact with the European Central Bank and its president Mario Draghi and that the smooth financing of the banks was guaranteed and would continue.

Meanwhile, Alexis Tsipras’ coalition partner, leader of Independent Greeks and Minister of Defence Panos Kammenos had firmly rejected the probability of Athens requesting an extension of the bailout, which is the main prerequisite for continuing the negotiations with the lenders of Greece.

Immediately after the Eurogroup meeting and before the official statements of Minister of Finance Yanis Varoufakis, Kammenos sent the following message via his personal Twitter profile, "We won’t seek extension of the Memorandum. People have empowered us to get to the end. All Greeks say "No". We won’t be blackmailed."

After another refusal on the part of Athens to agree with its European partners, all eyes are focused on the meeting of the parliamentary group of SYRIZA later today, at which Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will present the candidate for president of Greece. It is expected that his speech will clarify to some extent the position that his government will take at the next Eurogroup meeting on Friday.

Earlier today, and shortly before the meeting of the European Council on Economic and Financial Affairs (Ecofin), Yanis Varoufakis said, "The next step will be a responsible step. We know that Europe is able to discuss in a way that has led to a good and respectful decision despite the initial differences."

For his part, the Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem said nothing more than his last night's statements, namely that Athens should request an extension of the current bailout. "The Greeks themselves have to make a decision on the matter. We cannot impose it on them. Everything depends on them," he said, adding the following:

"I hope they will request an extension of the programme and when they do so we can be flexible regarding what is stipulated in it. They will be able to present their political priorities with the premise that the implementation of the programme will continue."

At the same time, senior European officials referred to by Reuters refute last night’s statements of Varoufakis that Jeroen Dijsselbloem had withdrawn the draft for a joint statement proposed earlier by Commissioner for Monetary Affairs Pierre Moscovici. In statements to the media, Varoufakis said he was ready to sign this document.

According to the unnamed sources cited by the global agency, there was no such a document. "There is only one document that the Eurogroup President presented at the meeting. Commissioner for Financial Affairs Moscovici had a constructive exchange of viewpoints with Minister Varoufakis," they indicated.

The same is the position of Financial Times columnist Peter Spiegel, who wrote on Twitter that, according to European officials, there was no such a document but a statement of principles agreed by the two sides.

Greek government spokesman Gabriel Sakellaridis insisted that there was another draft opinion and said he had seen it. At the same time, however, he refused to give more information about it, arguing that he was not qualified to do so at present.

And while the mass demonstrations in support of the government continue whenever Tsipras and Varoufakis are in Brussels to participate in EU meetings, critical comments on the actions of the cabinet appear on social networks, such as the following:

"This story about the document of Moscovici is no longer funny, it is cynical. The government (not Varoufakis but the government!) is obliged not only to reveal what the hell was written in it on which it would have agreed and what exactly it means. To clearly say which of the things described by Moscovici it would do and which of the proposals contained in the document of Dijsselbloem it would not do and what it considers right. To prove that its refusal had some real meaning and was not intended only for consumption and for the natives on the eve of a predetermined collision. Everything else is nonsense, the sole purpose of which is providing false information, deceiving, transferring the responsibility for the tragic situation in which we are on our partners. Although it is already more than clear that we are talking about a handful of incapable maniacs who pretend to be ministers and play "negotiations".