Greek PM raps IMF for rejecting Athens’ proposals
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has criticized the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for dismissing Athens’ proposed reforms needed to restart bailout loan payments.
Tsipras made the remarks before heading to the Belgian capital, Brussels, to hold negotiations with the chiefs of the troika of lenders – the IMF, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission (EC) -- ahead of a meeting of Eurozone finance ministers on Greece’s debt crisis later on Wednesday.
The refusal to accept Athens’ proposed measures “by certain institutions never occurred before -- neither in Ireland nor Portugal," Tsipras wrote on his Twitter account.
"This strange position maybe hide two things: either they do not want an agreement or they are serving specific interests in Greece," he added.
An unidentified EU official, however, said that the planned talks with Greece have not broken down, adding that “negotiations are going on and the meeting with Tsipras will go ahead as planned.”
Meanwhile, Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis emphasized that an agreement with creditors on Greece's bailout program could emerge shortly.
"We are entering the final stretch of negotiations - which we hope will be the last," Varoufakis told reporters in Athens.
Greece has been unable to borrow on international markets over the past years, but it has presented a list of reforms to secure funds from lenders.
This is while the Mediterranean country is due to make a €1.6 billion (USD1.8 billion) repayment to the IMF at the end of the month, with another €6.7 billion (USD7.5 billion) due to the European Central Bank ECB in July and August.
There are concerns that Greece may default on debts if a deal is not clinched with its lenders by the end of June.
In 2010 and 2012, Greece received two bailouts worth a total of €240 billion (USD 272 billion) from its international creditors following the 2009 economic crisis.
SSM/HMV/HRB
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