US can't afford to shun Greece: PM
Source: Agencies |
March 10, 2010, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
AHEAD of a meeting with United States President Barack Obama, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou is stressing that his country's financial woes are a problem the US can't afford to ignore.
Papandreou also says he is not looking for a handout from Washington.
Instead, Greek officials say they want to see the US impose stricter regulations on hedge funds and currency traders that Athens believes aggravated their crisis.
In his meetings this week with Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Papandreou also is seeking to outline for the US administration the steps that Greece is taking to stem its financial bleeding and reform its economy.
Austerity measures announced so far by Papandreou's government are not going down well with the country's work force. Government workers said yesterday they will extend a garbage strike that has led to piles of rubbish in the streets of Athens.
The strike is part of the protests by unions that oppose a 4.8-billion-euro (US$6.5 billion) austerity package that will hike consumer taxes and slash pay for public sector workers by up to 8 percent.
Papandreou's trip to Washington along with his finance minister, George Papaconstantinou, comes as Greece tries to climb out of a steep economic hole that widened after Papandreou's Socialist party came to power in October and revealed that its budget deficit was far worse than the previous government had disclosed. Greece revised its budget deficit to 12.7 percent of gross domestic product for 2009 from below 4 percent earlier that year.
The Obama administration and the US Congress are considering major changes in the US financial system designed to prevent future activities such as those that caused the global financial crisis.
Papandreou also says he is not looking for a handout from Washington.
Instead, Greek officials say they want to see the US impose stricter regulations on hedge funds and currency traders that Athens believes aggravated their crisis.
In his meetings this week with Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Papandreou also is seeking to outline for the US administration the steps that Greece is taking to stem its financial bleeding and reform its economy.
Austerity measures announced so far by Papandreou's government are not going down well with the country's work force. Government workers said yesterday they will extend a garbage strike that has led to piles of rubbish in the streets of Athens.
The strike is part of the protests by unions that oppose a 4.8-billion-euro (US$6.5 billion) austerity package that will hike consumer taxes and slash pay for public sector workers by up to 8 percent.
Papandreou's trip to Washington along with his finance minister, George Papaconstantinou, comes as Greece tries to climb out of a steep economic hole that widened after Papandreou's Socialist party came to power in October and revealed that its budget deficit was far worse than the previous government had disclosed. Greece revised its budget deficit to 12.7 percent of gross domestic product for 2009 from below 4 percent earlier that year.
The Obama administration and the US Congress are considering major changes in the US financial system designed to prevent future activities such as those that caused the global financial crisis.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
