An
International Monetary Fund study published on Tuesday showed that Greece needs
far more debt relief than European governments have been willing to contemplate
so far, as fractious parties in Athens prepared to vote on a sweeping austerity
package demanded by their lenders.
In an interview with state television, he
said that although he did not believe in the deal, there was no alternative but
to accept it to avoid economic chaos.
The IMF study, first reported by Reuters,
said European countries would have to give Greece a 30-year grace period on
servicing all its European debt, including new loans, and a dramatic maturity
extension. Or else they must make annual transfers to the Greek budget or
accept "deep upfront haircuts" on existing loans.
The Debt Sustainability Analysis is likely to
sharpen fierce debate in Germany about whether to lend Greece more money. The
debt analysis also raised questions over future IMF involvement in the bailout
and will be seen by many in Greece as a vindication of the government's plea
for sweeping debt relief. A Greek newspaper called the report, which was
initially leaked, a slap in the face for Berlin.
Late on Tuesday, a senior IMF official, who
spoke on condition of anonymity, said, "We have made it clear ... we need
a concrete and ambitious solution to the debt problem.
"I don't think this is a gimmick or
kicking the can down the road ... If you were to give them 30 years grace you
are allowing them in the meantime to bring down debt by ... getting some growth
back."
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble
said in Brussels on Tuesday that some members of the Berlin government think it
would make more sense for Athens to leave the euro zone temporarily rather than
take another bailout.
The Greek Finance Ministry said it had
submitted the legislation required by a deal Tsipras reached with euro zone
partners on Monday to parliament for a vote on Wednesday.
Assuming Athens fulfils its end of the
bargain this week by enacting a swathe of painful measures, the German
parliament is due to meet in a special session on Friday to debate whether to
authorize the government to open new loan negotiations.
"The dramatic deterioration in debt
sustainability points to the need for debt relief on a scale that would need to
go well beyond what has been under consideration to date - and what has been
proposed by the ESM," the IMF said, referring to the European Stability
Mechanism bailout fund.
An EU source said euro zone finance
ministers and leaders had been aware of the IMF figures when they agreed on
Monday on a roadmap to a third bailout.
Πηγή: reuters.com
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