European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso (R) talks with Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou in Brussels, 20.07.2011 before the eurozone summit a day later. Photo: PAP/EPA/Olivier Hoslet
The announcement came some 24 hours before today’s eurozone summit in Brussels, where a final decision is to be taken on an aid package for Greece. If the leaders of the eurozone countries fail to reach a compromise, pundits are saying that the crisis may spread beyond Europe’s borders.
“Leaders need to come to the table saying what they will do, not what they cannot do” Barroso firmly said in a statement, Wednesday, adding “I urge all the leaders to show the ethics of European responsibility.”
“It is in the self-interest of every member state to commit. The truth is, we are interdependent, our partners count on Europe, but without Europe and the European Union, Europeans will not count,” Barroso proclaimed.
The new bailout would supplement the 110 billion euro package for Greece launched in May last year, and is expected to include fresh emergency loans to Athens from eurozone governments and the International Monetary Fund, as well as other measures.
Head of Greece’s Foreign Ministry, Stavros Lambrinidis raised hopes during a meeting with his Polish opposite number Radoslaw Sikorski in Warsaw, Wednesday, that EU leaders will come to the help of his country.
“It is not just a problem for Greece, but for the whole of Europe,” Lambrinidis said, adding that “we must jointly make decisions to deal with the situations which have erupted recently in Spain, Italy or Portugal.”
“We must undertake joint action to tackle this crisis […] I hope that [Greece] will get such a response at the summit [in Brussels],” Lambrinidis stated.
Poland itself is not taking part in the summit, as it is not part of the eurozone.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski (R) meets with his Greek counterpart Stavros Lambrinidis in Warsaw, 20.07.2011 Photo: PAP/Pawel Supernak
Merkel and Sarkozy to rescue the eurozone?
Ahead of today’s summit, French President Nicolas Sarkozy met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin to discuss the euro debt crisis.
After a reported seven hours of talks, a common position was announced between the two countries, the largest economies in the eurozone.
No details of the outcome of the talks have been released, although Merkel’s spokesman did say that the Head of the European Central Bank, Jean Claude-Trichet was present at the meeting.
IMF pushes for Greece resolution
The International Monetary Fund is weighing in on Thursday’s summit in Brussels, pushing the EU to reach a decision on how to help Greece and the eurozone.
Market confidence in the eurozone has slumped to the extent that Polish bonds have been valued higher than those of Spain, one of the worst hit by the eurozone crisis.
While Greece is paralysed by transport strikes, EC head Jose Manuel Barroso has nominated Hirst Reichenbach, deputy head of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to implement reforms in Greece. (jb)
Source: IAR/PAP/BBC/Rzeczpospolita/Guardian (UK)