Almunia says EU should help Greece
The European Commission’s Vice President Joaquin Almunia has declared that European nations should be prepared to offer more financial support to debt-wracked Greece if necessary.
In an interview with Dow Jones Newswires, Almunia said that if Greece had made good on pushing through agreed-to reforms, its EU partners should take more action to support it.
“They have huge problems that need to be tackled and they should be at the forefront of their own solutions,» Almunia was quoted as saying. «But they cannot solve their…problems alone. If they do what they have committed to do, then the EU institutions and the other members of the EU should support Greece.» Asked if this support meant giving Greece more cash, Almunia said: «Yes… more cash.”
Almunia’s comments were the first of their kind by a top EU executive No other official at his level has publicly promoted the idea of granting Greece further aid beyond the 240 billion euros of promised in two international bailouts.
