Time is running out for Greece as it faces a chaotic default if it cannot meet 14.5 billion euros in debt repayments due on March 20 and some EU leaders suggest Athens should leave the euro zone currency union.
With elections now scheduled for April in Greece, there is talk in Europe of delaying the second bail-out until after elections, when a new government is in place.
The troika to maintain a permanent presence to surveil the program, plus funds into an escrow account?
Eurogroup chief Jean-Claude Juncker hinted at the troika maintaining a permanent presence in Athensto “strengthen the surveillance of the program,” as well as the creation of an escrow account so priority would be given to debt servicing. Under this scheme, Greece would only receive any money to cover public spending if all debts had been paid.
There is concern within the eurozone that should snap elections be held in April, it may result in a coalition government that includes parties that are opposed to the terms of the bailout.
Fathom Consulting warned this evening that: A consensus seems to be emerging among European policy makers that a Greek exit, although painful, would be containable. We disagree. A Greek exit would, in all probability, precipitate a collapse of the entire single currency.
Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos told President Karolos Papoulias on Wednesday that there were growing calls for Greece to exit the eurozone and stressed that Athens must convince its peers that it belongs in the single currency zone. "There are lots of people in the eurozone who no longer want us in. We have to convince them that we can stay in the euro zone, that we can regain the ground we have lost,» Venizelos told Papoulias.
While most of the elements of the package, which will total 130 billion euros, are in place, euro zone finance ministers are not satisfied that Greece's political leaders are sufficiently committed to the deal, which requires Athens to make further spending cuts and introduce deeply unpopular labour reforms.
Greece's president, Karolos Papoulias, launched a fierce defence of his country this afternoon, singling out Germany for criticism over the way Europe's biggest state has approached the crisis.
Karolos Papoulias, fresh from surrendering his salary as a sign of solidarity, took particular aim at Germany's Wolfgang Schäuble for his recent comments that Greece must 'surrender some of its sovereignty'. Who is Mr Schäuble to insult Greece? Who are the Dutch? Who are the Finnish? We all have an obligation to put our shoulder to the wheel in order to overcome the crisis. I cannot accept that my country should be reviled by Schäuble. I cannot accept this as a Greek.
There is widespread corruption in the country, and it seems now to be on the rise.
Corruption-one of the biggest problems facing the cash-strapped country
Most Greeks feel graft is one the rise. A whopping 98 percent of Greeks see corruption as one of the biggest problems facing the cash-strapped country and 79 percent say it affects their everyday lives, in stark contrast to just 29 percent of Europeans who feel affected.