Brussels, 29/04/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 29 April, Economic and Financial Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said that the European Commission was not expecting any kind of breakdown in the talks with Greece.
There is no plan B, no alternative, he added, pointing out the efforts made by Greece in recent days to make the talks more tangible and effective. At the start of the week, the Greek government announced a reshuffle of its negotiating team that is working with the country's lenders on a list of reforms to be introduced. Moscovici said it was not a question of individuals but rather a desire to make useful compromises. He added that the Eurogroup meeting on 11 May would be a very important stage in the current process.
Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said that he had not been marginalised in the reshuffle: “Yes, I'm in charge. I'm responsible for the talks with Eurogroup”, he told German newspaper Die Zeit.
The president of Eurogroup, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, said that the reshuffle would not in itself be enough to get the talks out of the doldrums because the financial situation was getting more acute. “Without further loans, Greece won't make it, that's the reality,' he told Dutch broadcaster RTL Nieuws. Asked about a potential referendum in Greece, he said: “It would cost money, it would create great political uncertainty, and I don't think we have the time”. Earlier in the week, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras hinted that the government might hold a referendum if the talks with the lenders broke down. “If the solution offered goes beyond our mandate, it will have to be endorsed by the Greeks”, he said.
On Wednesday, Greece is due to unveil draft legislation that the Greek press says does not include any new concessions but is more a demonstration of good faith by the government. The legislation is expected to include tax measures (tax on broadcasting and television advertising) and reform of the civil service. The day before, the Greek parliament voted through the restoration of public television chain ERT, which the pervious coalition government closed without warning in 2013 in order to save money.
On the same day, the Euro Working Group at the EU Council of Ministers was due to discuss Greece. The question of additional financing for the country will be settled over the next few days in order to leave time for the national parliaments that require this to give their go-ahead, said Reuters, quoting a eurozone official. For the moment, the main area of conflict is still pension reform (which the IMF is insisting on). The institutions place differing emphasis on the reforms to be carried out, which does not make the talks any easier.
The ECB has again raised the cap on emergency funding for Greek banks, setting it at €76.9 billion (an increase of €1.4 billion). The Bank of Greece says that more than €2 billion was withdrawn from Greek banks in March (€7.6 billion in February, €12.8 billion in January and €4.2 billion in December). (Elodie Lamer)