(Boursier.com) – The Greek crisis drags on, while the pessimistic statements continue to circulate on the progress of negotiations on the country’s debt … Friday, finance ministers of the euro area discussed in Riga, Latvia, as part of a new Eurogroup meeting dedicated to this thorny issue. But even before the kickoff of the meeting, the European Commission had excluded the possibility of reaching an agreement for lack of progress in talks between Greece and its creditors.
“Advances in technical negotiations are not sufficient to reach an agreement during the Eurogroup to Riga “, told Valdis Dombrovskis, Vice President, Latvian, of the European Commission in charge of the Euro. “The technical discussions must continue,” he added.
Emergency situation
For his part, Pierre Moscovici, the European Commissioner for Economic Affairs recalled the urgency of the situation, “the message is accelerating + + We do not yet have the means to move towards a conclusion.” he he said … There is “a sense of urgent that we want to. The message is passed to the Greek authorities “… Pressed to present a credible program of reforms, a prerequisite for the payment of the last installment in Athens using (7.2 billion euros) Greece has so far remained vague about his plans, rejecting the austerity imposed by creditors.
A Merkel Tspiras meeting “constructive”
On Thursday evening, Prime Greek Minister Alexis Tsipras met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the sidelines of the EU summit on Mediterranean migrants. Merkel described the meeting as “constructive” and stressed that “everything must be done to avoid” that Greece could default before it reached an agreement with its creditors.
For its part, a Greek official spoke of “convergence” of views with Merkel, including about a goal of reducing the primary budget surplus of Greece. Since 2013, the price of painful reforms led by the troika (EU, ECB and IMF), Greece was able to achieve his first primary surpluses (before debt burden) since 2003, corresponding to 0.8% GDP in 2013 and 0.4% in 2014. This figure was considered disappointing, the government and the troika have counted on an improvement in the primary surplus in 2014, 2% of GDP. With the arrival to the radical left Syriza power in January, economists now fear a return in negative territory in 2015, given the abandonment of austerity and delays in structural reforms …
A leeway on the primary budget surplus?
On Friday, the French finance minister Michel Sapin found that there was leeway to negotiate the surplus targets Elementary Greek budget. Mr Sapin, it is possible to work on the objectives of the primary surplus “as long as it remains positive” … “But every day that passes makes things more complicated,” he added, however .. . “We have to avoid an accident”, ie a Greek default on its debt, which could lead to uncontrolled exit from the euro zone …
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