Creditors offer Greece 5-month bailout extension: Report
Greece’s international creditors have reportedly offered the country a five-month extension of its current bailout program in return for the implementation of demanded reforms.
AFP reported on Friday that a proposal – seen by news agency – said the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had offered a EUR 12-billion (USD 13.4-billion) extension of the current bailout deal to Athens on the condition that the cash-strapped country accepts the list of austerity reforms under a new agreement between the two sides.
The five-month extension to the bailout would be the third since last December. The creditors want the government of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to accept key reforms on pensions and value-added tax (VAT).
Athens has so far refused to agree to the tough reforms, arguing that the continuation of the bailout should be aimed at helping the country’s devastated economy without the enforcement of additional austerity measures.
According to the report, the creditors would also disburse the first EUR 1.8 billion in aid to help Greece avoid defaulting on its debt to the IMF if the country’s lawmakers approve the reforms required by the lenders.
The money, which comprises profits from Greek bonds held by the ECB, would be paid out “as soon as the Greek parliament has approved with a resolution the agreement with the (creditor) institutions and adopted a first set of legislative actions,” the document said.
According to the terms of the bailout deal, Greece should make a EUR 1.6-billion (USD 1.79-billion) payment to the IMF at the end of this month, while another EUR 6.7-billion payment is due to the ECB in July and August.
Greece received two bailouts in 2010 and 2012 worth a total of EUR 240 billion (USD 272 billion) from its troika of international lenders following the 2009 economic crisis.
In another development, following a two-day EU summit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande urged Athens to “accept the extraordinarily generous offer from the institutions.”
The Greek premier reacted to the proposal by saying that “blackmail and ultimatums” had no place in the 28-nation bloc’s principles. “In these crucial hours, nobody has the right to put these principles at risk.”
Meanwhile, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has reportedly said he sees a 50-50 chance that Greece and its negotiating sides reach an accord aimed at unlocking vital bailout funds.
HN/MKA/HJL
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