Greece's
parliament voted early Sunday in favor of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' motion
to hold a July 5 referendum on creditor proposals for reforms in exchange for
loans, with the country's future in the eurozone looking increasingly shaky.
In the
streets of Greece, worried people queued outside banks for cash from dawn to
dusk after Tsipras' announcement in the early hours of Saturday, after billions
of euros had already been emptied in the preceding weeks.
Greece has
a 1.6 billion euro ($1.8 billion) debt due to the International Monetary Fund
on Tuesday and its bailout program expires the same day, after which it is
unclear how the country might survive financially.
The
referendum is set for next Sunday with the question on whether to accept
proposed reforms needed to get bailout loans from other eurozone countries and
the IMF. The government is advocating a rejection of the proposals.
The radical
left-wing leader accused the creditors of using blackmail and ultimatums
against his proud but struggling people. European officials and all Greek
opposition parties except the extremist far-right Golden Dawn party called his
move for a vote a foolish and rash gambit that effectively ended negotiations
to keep Greece financially afloat.
The sudden
move comes after five months of stalemated negotiations, with Tsipras accusing
creditors of trying to strong-arm his country into taking harsh austerity
measures he says would hammer an economy already on its knees after months of
creditor-demanded spending cuts and tax hikes.
The
referendum move further crumbled already strained relations between Greece and
its European partners. Tsipras said the Greek people would vote against a deal
next Sunday. "This no will also be a big yes, a big yes to the decision of
the Greek government to reject an ultimatum that insults the Greek
people."
Πηγή: nbcnews.com
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