Brussels, 17/01/2014 (Agence Europe) - On 16 January, the European Commission gave the go-ahead to the extension until 30 June 2014 of an Irish bank resolution scheme for struggling credit unions. On 15 January, the Commission approved the extension until June 2014 of a Greek state aid scheme for struggling banks. The Irish scheme was first approved on 20 December 2011 and has been extended several times since then, most recently in July 2013. The Greek scheme, which includes a bank recapitalisation programme and a guarantee system, was initially approved in November 2008 and has been extended several times, most recently in July 2013. The Commission says that extending the schemes complies with the EU state aid guidelines for struggling banks during the crisis. (FG/transl.fl)