Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 17-05-22

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] EWG approves institutions report on prior actions implemented by Greece

[02] Moscovici: Commission to present positive compliance report for Greece at Eurogroup

[03] Dijsselbloem: Monday's Eurogroup will reach deal on Greece but not final 'end deal'

[04] IMF-Berlin 'distance' the biggest hurdle for Eurogroup, say Schaeuble, Le Maire

[01] EWG approves institutions report on prior actions implemented by Greece

"There are many opinions and many technical solutions," the same source said, noting Greece is the last one on the Eurogroup agenda and that today's meeting is expected to be long.

[02] Moscovici: Commission to present positive compliance report for Greece at Eurogroup

"The Hellenic Parliament has voted through a very difficult package of measures that asks the Greek people to make new, brave but necessary efforts," Moscovici said. Greece was meeting its commitments and making significant efforts, therefore it was now important that Greece's partners also assume their own responsibilities, he said.

The Commissioner said that the target on Monday was to conclude the second review and to find an agreement for the sustainability of Greece's debt, with the participation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

"I hope and believe that we can quickly arrive at an agreement," Moscovici said, noting that all the actors involved want to reach a global agreement, an overall agreement. The task for the Eurogroup on Monday, he added, was to work to achieve a convergence of views between the IMF and Germany.

Moscovici concluded by saying that all possible efforts must be made on Monday to arrive at such an agreement, so that Greece and the Eurozone can look forward to a more optimistic future.

"Now the Greek people need to see that there is a response to their efforts," the Commissioner added.

[03] Dijsselbloem: Monday's Eurogroup will reach deal on Greece but not final 'end deal'

"On the other hand, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has asked for more clarity, more specificity, on how far that could go, what that could look like. So that's what we're looking at today: could we give more specifics on what the debt measures could be. But again, the formal decision on debt relief, if needed, will come at the end of the programme," he added.

Dijsselbloem said that the aim on Monday was to ensure the IMF's participation in the Greek programme. He noted that there were "different demands" on some issues, such as on the growth of the Greek economy, and repeated that there will be greater clarity on all issues at the end of the Greek programme.

The Eurogroup president noted that Monday's Eurogroup will very probably decide the size of the next tranche of loans to be disbursed to Greece.

[04] IMF-Berlin 'distance' the biggest hurdle for Eurogroup, say Schaeuble, Le Maire

Achieving convergence between Berlin and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will require significant effort, the French economy minister said, because the initial positions of the two sides were "quite far apart".

"This is the job of finance ministers, however, and I hope that a good effort will be made today," he added.

Le Maire reported having a series of meetings with his Eurozone counterparts ahead of Monday's Eurogroup, including his meeting with German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble in Berlin earlier the same day and Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos, as well as a meeting with IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde.

Welcoming the "difficult" measures and decisions pushed through the Greek Parliament last week, Le Maire noted that Monday's Eurogroup must arrive at an agreement that allows Greece to face the future in a more positive way. "I think this is in the interests of Greece but also the Eurozone," he said.

In response to Schaeuble's statement that he has not been given the German Parliament's mandate to reduce Greek debt, meanwhile, Le Maire said that it was "possible to find solutions that do not require the approval of the German Parliament, provided there is imagination."

Schaeuble hopeful that Monday's Eurogroup will reach 'political' deal on Greece

Welcoming the package of prior actions voted by the Greek Parliament last week, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble expressed hope that a "political" agreement will emerge at Monday's Eurogroup on Greece and was optimistic that the second tranche of loans can be promptly disbursed.

"Today we will discuss mainly Greece and for this reason there is a general expectation that we will arrive at an agreement," Schaeuble said in a doorstep statement as he arrived for the Eurozone finance ministers' meeting. He noted that the institutions' will present their reports and their assessment of the situation during the meeting.

"I hope that today we will have an agreement that concludes the issue politically. We cannot, of course, conclude the issue of the next payment. We need a compliance report and a series of other things. We are broadly, however, adhering to the line we decided last May in order to arrive at a political agreement and create the conditions for a prompt disbursement of the second tranche," he said.

Schaeuble clarified that the agreement for the payment for the next tranche could not be finalised during Monday's Eurogroup but the political ground rules could be laid down, so that the technical work that will culminate in a final agreement can be concluded in the coming weeks.

Regarding the participation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the Greek programme, the German finance minister noted that the IMF's debt sustainability analysis for Greece did not agree with that of the Europeans. "We must therefore find a solution that will allow the IMF to continue participating in the Greek programme without breaking its own rules," he added. This would be one of the difficult issues at the meeting, Schaeuble said, while expressing confidence that a solution will be found.

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