NEWS

Schaeuble claims eurozone agrees on avoiding Greek debt writedown

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said all euro-region member states have agreed that they can’t give Greece a debt cut while also providing fresh guarantees.

“You can’t guarantee something if you conduct a debt cut at the same time — that’s not only the case in Germany but in all euro-region member states,” Schaeuble told reporters before a meeting of euro-area finance ministers in Brussels today. “We’ll find a solution, I’m optimistic. We’ve made some good preparations — we’ve reached a level where we can take a decision soon.”

He also said that the International Monetary Fund will be part of a solution.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on arrival that the solution must be «credible for Greece». The IMF has advocated some form of debt writedown for Greece to make the country’s debt pile sustainable.

The Fund is thought to have agreed to ease the target of Greek debt standing at 120 percent of GDP in 2020 to 124 percent of GDP.

[Kathimerini English Edition & Bloomberg]

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