EU-IMF and Tsipras fail to reach deal as deadline looms

Source:AFP Published: 2015-6-26 0:33:01

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and his country's creditors failed to reach a bailout deal at emergency talks on Thursday, raising fresh fears that Athens will default on an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan next week.

The differences remain so great despite two days of marathon negotiations that the EU-IMF lenders and Greece will present rival reform proposals to eurozone finance ministers later in Brussels, sources said.

"The Greeks have rather made steps backward. Positions are even further apart rather than narrowing," Germany's influential Wolfgang Schaeuble said ahead of a meeting of eurozone finance ministers.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said he was "tired to death" after talks with leftist Tsipras and the heads of the European ­Central Bank (ECB) and IMF late Wednesday and early Thursday.

The aim was to finalize a deal in time to have it approved by EU leaders meeting at a summit in Brussels on Thursday night, ahead of a June 30 payment deadline for a 1.5 ­billion euro ($1.7 billion) IMF loan repayment.

But they produced no breakthrough in the five-month standoff between Greece and the creditors, who have ­refused to release 7.2 billion euros in bailout funds unless the ­government promises reforms.

"There will be two texts" at the Eurogroup meeting of eurozone finance ministers, a Greek government source said. "It's a sign of the big distance between Greece and its creditors."

The disagreements have centered on spending cuts, VAT and pensions, which Greece says it can ill afford after two punishing EU-IMF bailout programs since 2010 worth 240 billion euros.

Discussions have become increasingly acrimonious as the deadline looms and on Wednesday Greece withdrew some of its reform proposals, apparently for the first time since negotiations began.

Greek government sources said two were withdrawn from the list under pressure from Tsipras' Syriza party, ­including an unpopular increase in ­pensions contributions.

Posted in: Europe

blog comments powered by Disqus