Greece has been told to produce detailed proposals this week to meet its budget deficit reduction plans in 2011 and 2012, in addition to the current year, before it can qualify for a combined rescue package from the International Monetary Fund and fellow eurozone members.
As pressure increased in Athens to step up the pace of negotiations, Germany made it clear that a three-year programme must be agreed with the IMF, the European Central Bank and the European Commission, before the combined €45bn ($60bn) loans can be approved to meet the Greek government debt repayment schedule for the current year. Wolfgang Schäuble, German finance minister, said that no decision had yet been taken on to go ahead with the €30bn eurozone loan package: “It depends on whether Greece carries on with its strict savings measures in the years ahead.”
The Commission endorses Berlin's view that Greece must come up with a detailed programme for cutting the budget next year by a further 3 to 4 percentage points of gross domestic product.