Euro Zone Leaders May Okay 2nd Greece Bailout

Monday, 20 February 2012, 22:30 IST
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Berlin: The Euro zone finance ministers are expected to approve Greece's second bailout at a crucial meeting as the debt-laden nation fulfilled more conditions set by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund to receive the assistance. European governments have welcomed the Greek Government's decision to allow greater oversight of its State revenue and spending by the E.U. and the IMF, which until now it vehemently opposed as an "interference in its internal affairs." The Greek Cabinet at an emergency meeting also passed a series of legislations to implement the latest austerity measures passed by Parliament last Sunday to convince its E.U. partners and the IMF ahead of the meeting in Brussels that it is determined to fulfill its commitments to secure the euro 130 billion ($170 billion) bailout package. Greece urgently needs the assistance from the EU and the IMF to avoid a default on repaying euro 14.5 billion debt due on March 20. The German Finance Minister,Wolfgang Schaeuble, expressed optimism that the finance ministers of the 17 nations using the common currency will finally clear the way for releasing the second bailout, which was offered in October, last year. "If Greece implements all necessary commitments and reforms till the end of February and clears the remaining questions, then the second aid package can be released," he said in a newspaper interview. The Austrian Finance Minister, Maria Felder, also was upbeat about an agreement by her colleagues to release the much-needed aid by their cash-strapped partner and to keep it in the euro zone. "Any other ways will be extremely difficult and very costly," she said in an interview. The Prime Minister, Lukas Papademos, announced after an emergency meeting of his Cabinet in Athens that Greece is now prepared to accept the E.U. demand for the setting up of an escrow account into which the bailout funds will be paid to ensure that it will be used to service its debts and will not be diverted to other purposes, media reports said. European governments are becoming increasingly sceptical whether Greece's politicians will deliver on their latest promises to scale down the country's debt mountain and to take the economy out of its five-year long recession. The Euro group "will do everything" to narrow down the differences before meeting, Jean-Claude Juncker, Luxembourg's Prime Minister and Chairman of the Euro Group said. In recent weeks, there were doubts whether the debt reduction target could be achieved or Greece will need more financial support from the E.U. and the IMF.
Source: PTI
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