On the agenda for Ecofin’s roundtable meeting in Brussels – EU banking union and the next chapter in the story of the Greek debt crisis.
But Greece’s international lenders argued over targets for the country to lower it’s debt to GDP ratio.
Pierre Moscovici, French Finance Minister:
“Our aim is to reach an agreement in principle on the 20th of November and to submit it for due process, after which – at the end of the month – we will move on to the execution of payments.”
Germany is the eurozone’s biggest contributor to bailout funds. The German finance minister is keen for Greece to plug their financing gap without costing Germany more money.
Wolfgang Schäuble, German Finance Minister:
“We need a reliable mechanism to put what’s been declared properly into place. It’s not down to a mistrust of the Greek government, but rather the experience we’ve gained and lessons learnt over the last years.”
Rudolf Herbert, Euronews:
“The two finance ministers showed in their joint press conference that they’re united on the road to solving the question of Greece’s debt. There certainly won’t be a haircut for the public creditors anyhow. But what’s still not clear is precisely which tools will be used to allow Greece more time without resorting to a new bailout.”
(euronews)
