The German government
expects Greece to uphold the terms of its international bailout agreement, a
spokesman for Chancellor Angela Merkel has said.
Greece is holding a
general election later this month, and anti-austerity party Syriza is ahead in
the polls. Syriza wants to renegotiate the terms of its international bailout.
Under those terms, the
so-called troika - EU, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank -
supported Greece with the promise of €240bn (£188bn) in return for budget cuts and
economic reforms.
"Greece has
fulfilled its obligations in the past. The German government assumes it will
continue to fulfil its contractual obligations to the troika," Mr Streiter
told reporters. "Every new government has to abide by the contractual
obligations of the previous government."
Turnaround
The stability of the
eurozone has once again risen up the political agenda with the rise of the
anti-austerity party Syriza, on course to win the 25 January snap election,
according to polling.
On Saturday, Der
Spiegel cited sources saying that both Mrs Merkel and finance minister Wolfgang
Schaeuble now believe the eurozone has introduced enough banking reforms and
support to withstand a Greek exit.
Berlin also feels that
the once-troubled countries of Ireland and Portugal have made good progress in
strengthening their economies, the report said.
The Syriza party, led
by Alexis Tsipras, has pledged to reverse reforms imposed by Greece's
international creditors and renegotiate its bailout deal.
(Πηγή: bbc.com)
