A LAMENTABLE feature of the Greek crisis of the past few months is the extent to which it has restoked national antipathies, on the part of both the Greeks and the Germans. A project—the single currency—that was conceived to cement European integration and put a seal on post-war reconciliation has instead revived memories of the Nazi occupation of Greece and torn both countries apart, at least in their public opinion, whether expressed on the streets of Athens or in the bromides of German tabloids.
Greece has now submitted new proposals to try to convince its creditors to provide a third bail-out that would enable it to stay within the euro. They are being pored over by officials representing the creditors from the European Commission and IMF (along with the European Central Bank) today and will be considered by the Eurogroup of finance ministers on Saturday. If the Eurogroup were to give them the green light the planned summit of leaders from the whole of the EU on Sunday to determine Greece’s fate may not happen after all. Yet even if the finance ministers respond favourably, it will still be touch and go whether bridging funds can be provided to enable Greece to redeem €3.5 billion of its debt held by the European Central Bank, which comes due on July 20th; a failure to pay this would make it virtually impossible for the ECB to sustain its support for Greek...Continue reading
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