The Greek government’s strategy in negotiations with creditors and the calculation of proposed measures in order to reach anĀ agreement were the main issues in Wednesday’s cabinet meeting headed by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.
However, party hardliners, the so-called Left Platform of SYRIZA, dramatize the situation and state that they are not willing to sign any deal that will go against the program the leftist party pledged in its pre-election campaign.
So far, Athens is willing to make concessions in tax reforms and privatizations but maintains the “red lines” in labor market and pension reforms. Cabinet members believe that a new tax system and privatizations might be the basis for an agreement as negotiations on a technical level are to resume today [Thursday] in Brussels.
Some of the reforms will be drafted into legislation so that Athens shows good will aiming at getting more liquidity from the European Central Bank (ECB). The Greek government hopes that expediting negotiations will bring an agreement by the end of May, when Athens runs out of liquidity.
According to a protothema.gr report, creditors are hardening their stance toward Greece by increasing demands. Allegedly, they ask for 700-euro salaries in the public sector and a raise in value added tax to 20%.
It is uncertain though if the proposed draft bills will be voted in Parliament. Several SYRIZA members believe that the measures proposed by creditors and the concessions Tsipras is willing to make go against the people’s mandate. SYRIZAĀ Left Platform head Panagiotis Lafazanis declared on Wednesday, “This government will not surrender.”
On Thursday, junior coalition partner ANEL leader Panos Kammenos said on Greek radio that he and his MPsĀ are not going to vote for any recessionary measures and that his party will vote against a new Memorandum.
Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis created a stir when he enigmatically said on Wednesday that he could not guarantee that the present government would be in power next January. Later in the day he said that the statement was taken out of context becauseĀ he was in fact talking to one of the Ministry cleaners who were rehired on Monday.
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