EU rejects new Greek proposals as not enough to unlock funds
Print Edition
EU officials yesterday swiftly dismissed new Greek promises of economic reform, saying the proposals were not enough to unlock funds that Athens urgently needs to avoid defaulting on its debts.
Despite signs that Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is adopting a more conciliatory line as time runs short for a deal, the officials in Brussels were quick to declare that Greece’s international lenders would not accept the latest proposals on tax, debt and the budget.
The chief spokesman for the European Commission said the European Union executive was still studying the suggestions and stressed that other officials do not speak for the commission.
But the EU officials passed judgment only hours after Athens announced it had sent the plan to Brussels. “What has been submitted is not sufficient to move the process forward,” said one EU official. Another said it was “not sufficient and not acceptable to member states.”
A source then said Greece was working to revise the proposals.
Athens was set to talk with creditors yesterday with the aim of narrowing differences so Tsipras can finalize a deal at a meeting in Brussels today, the source close to the talks said.
Frustration is growing among Greece’s fellow eurozone members who have footed a large part of the 240-billion-euro (US$270 billion) bill for bailing out Athens since it sank into a debt crisis in 2010.
“We will do everything to keep Greece in the eurozone ... but our patience is running out,” Finnish Finance Minister Alexander Stubb said.
The proposals sent to Brussels had marked a further attempt by Tsipras to compromise with EU and IMF lenders as time runs out to reach a deal to prevent his country going bankrupt.
The leftist Greek leader, who will meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande today, agreed to further raise value-added tax rates and proposed higher budget surplus targets to bridge the gap with the creditors.
European leaders led by Merkel have stressed the urgent need for a settlement.
The bailout program with the EU and International Monetary Fund expires at the end of this month, and Athens must make big debt repayments to the IMF by then that will probably be impossible without funds from its creditors.
Default would endanger Greece’s future in the eurozone, but Tsipras has to win over not only the lenders but also members of his Syriza party who are opposed to the harsh terms the EU and IMF have insisted on in return a bailout.
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