A summing-up of the crisis in Greece

As the week is ending and the political crisis continues in Greece it is time to collect some material  


Greek PM 'expected to step down'

al-Jazeera

‘Politicians can’t control Euro crisis’


RT

‘Euro could be dead in a month’

RT

Euro debt crisis: Greek PM George Papandreou to resign when new coalition government formed

Prime Minsiter George Papandreou and opposition leader Antonis Samaras locked in crisis talks to form a new government as eurozone leaders issue an ultimatum that a deal on a coalition must be sealed before a summit of finance ministers on Monday.

The Telegarph

6 November, 2011

George Papandreou, the Greek prime minister, cleared the way for his resignation by scheduling a three way meeting with Antonis Samaras, leader of the conservative opposition, and the president to overcome sticking points over the leadership and duration of the unity government.

A seven point plan for the new government was thrashed out at a cabinet meeting of socialist government. It included a deadline for parliament to ratify the eurozone bailout before the end of December.

Mr Papandreou told the cabinet that the country would be presented with a new government within hours and that he would vacate office soon after. The interim government, led by technocrats, will run the country until a general election is called, probably in the first half of next year.

"It is clear that this government will pass the baton but it will not pass it to a void - it will pass it to a new government, if we agree on it, and I hope this will happen soon. And when I say soon, I mean today, not tomorrow," he said in the text of remarks to his cabinet, released to the media.

"I'm not interested in being prime minister in the new government."

Papandreou also told his cabinet elections should not be held before February or March, after a euro zone bailout is approved by parliament.

Behind the scenes the main figures in Greek politics were under direct pressure to produce a ‘national salvation’ government from Brussels, Berlin and Paris. Mr Samaras was forced to deny that he had been telephoned by Chancellor Merkel with a demand that he sign up to the pact by morning.

President Karolos Papoulias warned that the wrangling between party leaders was increasing the misery of a population battered by budget cuts and a collapsing economy.

"This uncertainty that is torturing the Greek people must end. We must find a solution," President Papoulias said before meeting Mr Samaras.

But Mr Samaras stuck to his position that Mr Papandreou gives up the prime minister post.

"I am determined to help. Provided that Papandreou resigns, everything will take its course," he said.

There were reports last night that Loukas Papidimos, a former central bank governor, was flying back to the country from Frankfurt to lead the interim government.

Evangelos Venizelos, Finance Minister, is likely to take a senior post in the coalition as the main interlocutor with the eurozone.

Mr Venizelos is to lead the Greek delegation to the finance ministers meeting in Brussels today where he is expected to outline the national consensus platform on implementing the 130 billion euro bailout deal agreed last month.

That deal to save Greece from bankruptcy will impose fresh austerity measures on the Greek economy and is the first step in staunching the crisis spread to larger economies, Italy and Spain.

Pressure on the politicians from the church and business added to the sense of national crisis. 

Constantinous Michalos, head of the Athens Chamber of Commerce, said the stalemate needed to be broken by the end of Sunday, warning otherwise of dire consequences when the financial markets open again Monday.

"A solution is required immediately otherwise the country risks finding itself out of the eurozone tomorrow," he said. "There is no room for political jockeying. The country needs a new government tonight."

Olli Rehn, European Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner, echoed that message saying it was essential that Greek unity government restored confidence in the markets before the opening bell this morning.

"We have called for a national unity government and remain persuaded that it is the convincing way of restoring confidence and meeting the commitments," he said. "We need a convincing report on this by Finance Minister Venizelos tomorrow in the Eurogroup."

And now for the question that everyone in the mainstream has been avoiding - that Greece might leave the Euro and bring back the drachma.

European leaders are 'lifting the lid on Pandora's box'

European leaders have lifted the lid on a "Pandora's box" by raising the possibility of Greece leaving the single currency, economists warned yesterday, as the country's politicians fought to create a fresh government.

the Telegraph,

Rachel Cooper and Damien McElroy in Athens

8:06PM GMT 06 Nov 2011

After Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel last week said that Greece had to abide by the rules of the Brussels bail-out agreement or leave the eurozone, Morgan Stanley cautioned that leaders could have set in train a sequence of unintended consequences.

Joachim Fels, head of global economics at Morgan Stanley, wrote that the French president and German chancellor had raised the heretofore "taboo" subject of a country exiting the single currency.

"This is the second time in less than four months that European leaders could have opened a Pandora's Box: on July 21, the decision to involve the private sector in the Greek bailout signaled that euro area government debt is no longer risk-free and thus sparked massive contagion into Spanish and Italian debt markets," he added.

"This past week, by raising the possibility that a country might (be forced to) leave the euro, core European governments may have set in motion a sequence of events which could potentially lead to runs on sovereigns and banks in peripheral countries that make everything we have seen so far in this crisis look benign."

That warning came as Europe stepped up pressure on Greece to break its political deadlock, which is imperilling the country's €130bn (£111bn) bailout.

Greek leaders were last night in talks to establish a new government as eurozone leaders stressed that a deal on a coalition must be sealed before a summit of finance ministers begins today in Brussels.

George Papandreou, Greece's prime minister, cleared the way for his resignation by scheduling a meeting with opposition leader Antonis Samaras and the president to overcome sticking points over the leadership and the duration of a unity government. A seven point plan for the new government was thrashed out at a cabinet meeting, including a deadline for parliament to ratify the eurozone bail-out before the end of December.

Greece's finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, will lead the Greek delegation to Brussels, where he is expected to outline the national consensus platform on implementing the bail-out deal. Olli Rehn, the EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner, told Reuters that they needed a "convincing" report from Mr Venizelos.

Calling on Greece to establish a national unity government, he added that Athens' European partners "faced last week a breach of confidence by Greece which meant that Greece took itself on a course that would lead it outside the euro zone.

"We do not want that but we must be prepared for every scenario, including that one, for the sake of safeguarding financial stability and saving the euro," he said.

Events in Greece came as Christine Lagarde was set to begin her first trip to Russia since taking the helm of the International Monetary Fund. Financial aid to rescue Europe's debt-stricken countries was expected to dominate talks.

Moscow has said it is willing to talk bilaterally with affected countries, but has been hesitant over pledging cash to the eurozone as a whole

Spectre of Greek eurozone exit looms as tour firm plans for drachma comeback

German tour operator TUI writes to hoteliers demanding that they agree to renegotiate contracts in drachma

the Guardian, 

6 November, 2011

If Greeks were under any illusion that their country's exit from the eurozone is being entertained, it has been dispelled by the German tour operator TUI. Barely hours after the EU powerhouses Germany and France tore up the bloc's own rulebook with the taboo-breaking announcement that a Greek departure from the EU was no longer inconceivable, the travel giant demanded that hoteliers in Greece agree to renegotiate contracts in drachmas.

Amid all the political and economic uncertainty surrounding the debt-stricken country, the spectre of Athens returning to its old currency had suddenly been raised. "It's very sad and we think they have jumped the gun," said the Greek travel executive Christina Tetradis, who vowed to raise the issue at the industry's biggest trade fair, the World Travel Market, which opens in London on Monday.

"I have heard that TUI has sent letters with a clause mentioning drachmas to hoteliers in Crete, which is their largest market. People there are very upset."


For article GO HERE