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Greek finance minister due in Paris to seek EU allies

Saturday, 31 January 2015 3:57 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 31 January 2015 3:57 PM ]

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is scheduled to visit Paris Saturday as part of the new Greek government’s plan to seek EU allies.

Varoufakis will meet with his French counterpart, Michel Sapin, in Paris on Sunday, the French Finance Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

The finance minister of the Greek anti-austerity government was originally due to meet Sapin and Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron on Monday.

Varoufakis said on Friday that Greece would not negotiate with the “troika” of the EU Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), over his country’s debts.

Meanwhile, Greece's new prime minister has said that his country will pay back all of its creditors.

"I am absolutely confident that we will soon manage to reach a mutually-beneficial agreement, both for Greece and for Europe as a whole,” Alexis Tsipras said in a statement on Saturday, adding, "No side is seeking conflict and it has never been our intention to act unilaterally on Greek debt.”

Tsipras, who is to visit France and Italy next week in search of support for his policies, also reaffirmed his pledge to end the policies of austerity and start growth in the country.

The new Greek leader’s remarks come a day after German Chancellor Angela Merkel ruled out additional debt relief for Greece.

She said Europe will continue to show its solidarity with Greece if Athens implements “reforms and cost-saving measures.”

Greece nearly went bankrupt in 2010. It survived, however, on international rescue packages. Athens has received 240 billion euros (USD 330 billion) in international loans in return for the enforcement of austerity measures.

AR/HMV/SS

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