Germany has rejected a Greek request for a six-month extension to its eurozone loan programme, after earlier signs that a compromise was possible. Greece had sought a six-month assistance package, rather than a renewal of the existing deal that comes with tough austerity conditions. However, a German finance ministry spokesman said it was “not a substantial proposal for a solution”.
The European Commission had earlier called the Greek request “positive”….
Greece faces running out of money by the end of the month without a deal and deposits continue to flow out of its banks.
It’s still (far) too soon to bet on a Grexit, but could Germany at last be beginning to stick up for itself? And note that it is not only Germany that is hardening its stance. Take Slovakia, for example.
Slovakia’s prime minister has vowed not to support more financial aid for Greece, saying any debt reductions or increased handouts from the EU would cross a “red line”.
“This is a red line for us. It would be impossible to explain to the public that ‘poor’ Slovakia . . . should compensate Greece,” Mr Fico told the Financial Times in an interview. “To explain to people that we have to give money to Greece for their salaries and pensions? Impossible. Impossible.”
The European Commission does not have to explain anything to voters. Thus its willingness to compromise – all in the name of ‘ever closer union’, of course
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