German daily says IMF 'torpedoed' European Commission proposal on Greece debt
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has “torpedoed” a recent bailout deal proposed by the European Commission to Greece which was made in an attempt to avoid a potential default by the cash-strapped country, a report says.
German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said the deal that European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker proposed would have allowed the Greek government to postpone the implementation of cuts to pension payments worth about 400 million euros. Athens would have made similar savings on military spending in return for the proposal. The newspaper said in its Sunday edition that the IMF was against any kind of “bartering.”
There have been “tensions” in the past few days between the European Commission and the IMF over the issue of the Greek financial crisis, the daily stated, citing a “negotiator” as its source.
Greece and its international creditors have been in talks to reach a deal over the Greek debt. Greek negotiators flew to Brussels over the weekend in a last-ditch attempt to reach an agreement before a meeting of the eurozone finance ministers on June 18 that many regard as the final deadline.
Meanwhile, almost five months after taking office, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has come to a defining moment in Greece’s history. Either Tsipras gives in to the painful cash-for-reforms demands of the creditors to ensure Greece stays in the single currency, or else, the premier is forced to exit the EU bloc. Either way, Tsipras knows he and his leftist Syriza Party are the ones who have to shoulder the huge responsibility for the consequences of the decision.
Tsipras has already warned the Greek people to be prepared for a “difficult” time if a deal is reached. The Greek premier has also assured his top ministers that “people have trusted us to take crucial decisions and manage the difficulties.”
Tsipras has said that he would fight “for dignity and national sovereignty” of Greece if Europe “insists on a split and the continuation of subservience.”
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