ECONOMY

Centeno calls on Athens to continue reforms after bailout

Centeno calls on Athens to continue reforms after bailout

Eurogroup President Mario Centeno issued Athens with a clear message that reforms must continue to be implemented after the bailout program ends, stressing the need for the “ownership of reforms.”

Speaking to French state TV network France 24, the Portuguese finance minister said the success of the exit from the program will depend on the period after it, as now “Greece possesses the instruments and has applied reforms allowing its economy to grow in a sustainable way.”

Greece will also need to resolve the issue created with the island value-added tax discount extension, which has put off its last bailout tranche until early August.

A eurozone official told Kathimerini that the cuts of 28 million euros agreed between the Finance and Defense ministries in Greece are not genuine cuts, but the Greek proposal simply reduces the ceiling for some of its defense expenditure plans. “That was not a limit they were destined to reach anyway, so this is not a real cut,” he said.

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