How the world sees Greece
Greece will not need a third international debt bailout when its current programme ends in four months, the country's prime minister has said. Alexis Tsipras vowed his government would "start working hard" to change the country, which is saddled with a ...
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This week, our press review of European media is focussing on the lack of solidarity in Europe, especially regarding the Greek bailout. The historian David Abulafia, Professor at Cambridge University, talked about “the myth of a united Europe” in the British newspaper “The Telegraph”. The Spanish newspaper El pais dealt, among others, with the identity of […]
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currencies_2.jpg Home Page News Page Already driving a housing bubble in all major Asian cities from Seoul to Jakarta, significant hot money inflows are what Hong Kong, China and Singapore seek to avoid. However, Greece’s exit from the Eurozone coupled with subsequent quantitative easing by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to jump-start flagging growth could quickly exacerbate this Asian dynamic. Already driving a housing bubble in all major Asian cities from Seoul to Jakarta, significant hot money inflows are what Hong Kong, China and Singapore seek to avoid. However, Greece’s exit from the Eurozone coupled with subsequent quantitative easing by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to jump-start flagging growth could quickly exacerbate this Asian dynamic. See Also links url: http://www.economywatch.com/features/After-the-SNB-Decision-the-Reverberations-Continue.01-17-15.html Title: After the SNB Decision, the Reverberations Continue read more
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The University of Michigan has banished a fraternity, suspended a sorority and issued sanctions against four other Greek organizations responsible ...
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Greece's new radical left government has no intention of seeking yet another bailout deal from international creditors and will spend coming months trying to ease the terms of its current commitments, the financially struggling country's prime minister has ...
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ATHENS (Reuters) - Nearly half of Greeks would back the governing leftist party of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras if elections were held this week, a Metron Analysis poll to be published on Saturday showed.
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Greek Prime minister Alexis Tsipras announced Friday night, in a cabinet meeting, the first bills the government will table in Parliament beginning next week. Those include: 1) A bill to combat the "humanitarian crisis" born of austerity. It will provide for ...
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Greece is due to pay the IMF 1.6 billion euros next month but the Greek ... The total amount of Greek corporate and household deposits has now ...
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Internationally acclaimed Brazilian-Arab cartoonist Carlos Latuff has yet again turned his pen on Greece and the country’s ongoing financial thriller. Today, Latuff portrayed Greece being rather mad with the newly elected leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsirpas. In Latuff’s eyes, Tsipras is sitting on a desk and opposite him sits a European Union official who gives the Greek Premier a thumbs up. Next to Tsipras stands critical a woman, dressed in the Greek colors, who is holding a magnifying glass on one hand and the agreement reached on Tuesday between Athens and its Eurozone loan partners on the other. Tsipras appears sweaty and bewildered with his hands raised in an apologetic stance. On his Twitter account, Latuff explained: “SYRIZA makes concessions to reach a deal with the Eurogroup.” Two weeks ago, Latuff portrayed the Greek Prime Minister holding the same woman (Greece) in order not to collapse, as he is returning a folder that reads a crossed out “austerity” to the same European Union faceless official. The image of the arm around the new Greek Premier, who was seen as the country’s only foothold, sums the feelings and optimism many Greeks shared after his electoral win on January 25 that he will put an end to austerity.
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New Democracy MP and former Foreign Affairs Minister of the Karamanlis administration between 2006 and 2009, Dora Bakoyannis, did not rule out the possibility of challenging the party’s leadership in the near future after what was seen as a major defeat in the recent Greek general elections. In an interview with Greek Skai TV, the experienced politician underlined that she will express her will when the party’s Parliamentary Group convenes. “What I have to say, I will say it to the Parliamentary Group,” she declared, adding that Greece needs a “healthy and powerful center right front,” which does not reflect New Democracy’s current situation. Furthermore, as she explained, she has no personal goals and her only desire is to see the party “recover” and find its right political outlook once again. Moreover, Bakoyannis highlighted that New Democracy is currently facing strategic, political and operational problems that can only be solved by a “clear, internal discussion” kept away from “personal strategies” of any kind. Commenting on the new SYRIZA-led government, she said that it was inevitable not to submit the recent Eurogroup agreement to the Greek Parliament in order to be ratified and argued. She noted that the time to face reality has come for the government. New Democracy’s Parliamentary Group is scheduled to convene next Thursday, March 5, while the party’s Political Commission has arranged to convene on the following Sunday, March 8. Numerous major party members are expected to express their disagreement with the previous government’s applied policies in a series of issues that lead to a heavy electoral defeat, while the possibility of a leadership swap remains open, as many have already challenged former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’ personal decisions through the 2.5 years of his administration.
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The cabinet meeting chaired by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras convened earlier today, focusing on the preparation of the new government’s work as well as on the first bills to be submitted to the Greek Parliament by next week. The first bills, as the Greek Premier explained, are aiming to address the humanitarian crisis. The cabinet meeting comes only a few hours after an emergency meeting of the government’s economic team with the participation of Tsipras, centered on the funding gap and covering the fiscal needs. The meeting was also attended by government Vice President Giannis Dragasakis, Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, Economy Minister Giorgos Stathakis, Productive Reconstruction Minister Panagiotis Lafazanis, Deputy Finance Minister Nadia Valavani and Alternate Minister of International Economic Relations Euclid Tsakalotos. The Eurogroup agreement on the Greek list of reforms closed a first round of hard and persistent negotiations, the Prime Minister stressed in his speech, adding that the country achieved its preliminary targets set at this stage. “The Memoranda are finished, formally and substantially,” he continued, underlining that the European loan partners have finally withdrew their perseverance on impossible surpluses and confirmed the need to open new negotiations on the debt and its repayment. “Some have bet on a third bailout, on the possibility of a third bailout in June. I am very sorry but, once again, we will disappoint them. They should forget the third bailout. The Greek people put an end to bailouts with their vote,” he characteristically underlined. The government’s first bills to be submitted to the Greek Parliament In his speech, Tsipras said that starting from the coming week, the government will take concrete legislative initiatives, with the first bill dealing with measures to address the humanitarian crisis. The bill will include targeted arrangements for providing free electricity and food to 300,000 Greek households currently in need. In the same bill will also be contained a setting for the start of the housing program for 30,000 beneficiaries, with grants per person, and forecasts to reduce evictions that were propagated in the five years of the Memorandum. Similarly, the bill will include debt adjustments for debts to social security organizations. Furthermore, the same bill entails the arrangements in force prior to December 31, 2013, for Financial Crime Unit (SDOE) reports, so as not to simply form informative reports to the Revenue Services. Moreover, the government will table a legislation implementing the commitment of the primary residences’ protection by next week. This setting will be of an emergency character and will concern dwellings whose objective value does not exceed 300,000 euros. Finally, the Prime Minister also said that on Thursday, March 5, a draft legislation foreseeing the reinstatement of former state broadcaster ERT, which was abruptly shut down in June 2013 by the previous government, will be submitted to the Greek Parliament.
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The availability of European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) funds for Greece will be extended by four months, following a Friday decision by the facility’s board of directors to amend the Master Financial Assistance Facility Agreement (MFFA) for the purpose. Instead of expiring on February 28, the MFFA now expires on June 30, 2015. The amended MFFA will be signed by Facility CEO Klaus Regling and Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis. Following this decision, 1.8 billion euros that is still available under the MFFA can be disbursed to Greece up until June 30, an EFSF announcement said. The disbursement of this last loan tranche is conditional on the successful conclusion of the final review under the current arrangement and a unanimous decision by the EFSF board of directors. So far, the EFSF has disbursed 141.8 billion euros to Greece. The availability of 10.9 billion euros held by the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund (HFSF) in EFSF bonds is also extended to June 30. These bonds had been transferred to the HFSF in the past as part of the current arrangement for the recapitalization and resolution of Greek banks. According to the amended MFFA, the bonds will now be returned to the EFSF. They can be released to Greece only on request by the European Central Bank (ECB)/Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM). The amended MFFA reiterates that the purpose of these bonds is to cover bank recapitalization and resolution costs. Regling said regarding the decision: “Today’s decision marks an important intermediate step, as it provides for a clear framework to continue the reform efforts in Greece. It also gives reassurance as substantial EFSF funds remain available for Greece for four more months.” He noted that “the Greek government now has the opportunity to work with its partners to find a sustainable arrangement for the period after June 30, 2015. This will build on the considerable progress achieved so far in Greece, thanks to the huge efforts of the Greek people,” he added. In addition, the transfer of 1.8 billion euros of the 2014 profits from ECB’s Securities Markets Program (SMP) remains available for Greece. These funds are in an account managed by the European Stability Mechanism (ESM). Any disbursement is conditional upon the successful conclusion of the review and the approval of the Eurogroup, the statement said. (source: ana-mpa)
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According to the news agency...
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Athens relented in the end. But prior to the compromise deal allowing for an extension of Greece's bailout program, Greek Finance Minister Varoufakis and his German counterpart Schäuble engaged in a bitter battle for supremacy.
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Greek leftists angered by government backtracking on election promises to ease austerity measures took to the streets of Athens for the first time since ...
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Greek retail sales by volume fell 1.2 percent in December compared to the same month a year earlier, after falling 1.3 percent in November, statistics service ELSTAT said on Friday. Sales volumes had risen for five months ...
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Germany's Bundestag approved extending the aid program for the EU's most complicated emergency case. But the Greek bailout is not just about money, says DW's Marcel Fürstenau.
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Fears that unless more robust action is taken, the disease could spread to other important olive oil-producing nations such as Greece, Spain and Portugal
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Greece has been dragged through a lot of mud in the media over the past few years because previous governments overborrowed, and that ...
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After the approval by the German parliament of a four-month extension for the loan agreement between Greece and its creditors, Greek prime minister ...
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Greek PM rules out 3rd bailout, says debt reduction issue still on negotiating table
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Greece's new Radical Left SYRIZA-led coalition has prepared legislation to restore the closed former national broadcaster ERT and rehire the staff. The post Plans To Put ERT Back On The Air appeared first on The National Herald.
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by Kostis Geropoulos ATHENS – Cash-strapped Greece advanced its cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) on February 26, aiming to act as an economic bridge between the EU and the new union of Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Armenia that started functioning in January 2015. “I think that relations with the Eurasian Union have to be advanced throughout the European Union,” Spyros Kouvelis, the president of the newly-established Greek Eurasian Business Council (GEBC), told New Europe on February 26 on the sidelines of the launch of the council’s business activities. “It’s a very important economic part of the world. It’s a very important opportunity to reach out to a very strong developing economy,” said Kouvelis, who is a former deputy foreign minister of Greece. “I do not understand why Europe will not look in its neighbourhood and work as closely as they can and I believe Greece and from our business council [GEBC], being the first in the European Union, we can certainly try to explain, advance and be focused on good business on both sides which is a win-win for everyone,” he added. Eurasian Economic Commission (ECC) Integration Development Director Victor Spasskiy told New Europe in Athens that cooperation extends beyond the energy sector to food products, medicine and chemicals. He said the EAEU is eager to establish formal cooperation with the EU. “We are very young - only two months old. That’s why it is necessary to have real, official contacts,” he said, adding that the EAEU is also ready to cooperate with other countries and international organisations. Spasskiy, who is based in Moscow, also voiced his support for the Turkish Stream pipeline that is promoted by Russian gas monopoly Gazprom after it scrapped its planned South Stream pipeline to Europe in December. “[Turkish Stream] is a good idea. Turkey is a good partner and we have very good relations in economic sphere with Turkey. If Turkish businesses are now ready to buy more gas, why not?” he said, adding that in the future Russia could also supply gas to Europe through Turkey and Greece. Spasskiy admitted that Western sanctions against Moscow for its role in Ukraine are affecting not only Russia but EAEU-members Kazakhstan and Belarus. He said Russia’s plunging ruble, the sharp drop in oil prices and the sanctions are hurting their economies. In contrast, the Eurasian Economic Union is developing its relations with Asia. “Our relations with Asian countries are developing pretty good and results are positive. That’s why if we can’t buy some food producers here in the European Union, we can buy in Latin America, Asia and even South Africa,” Spasskiy said. He reiterated the idea of a United Eurasia from Lisbon to Vladivostok, launched by Russian President Vladimir Putin and echoed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Munich. “We are the real bridge between Europe and Asia. It is absolutely natural to develop our countries,” Spasskiy said. Asked about tensions between Russia and the EU, Spasskiy sighed, stressing that the Eurasian Economic Union is purely an economical organisation without any policy or security agendas. “That’s why it’s a good basis for developing relations,” he said. follow on twitter@energyinsider Previously on Energy Insider: Putin Willing to Exhume South Stream for EU Turkey Wants It Both Ways: Russian Gas, EU Pipe Tsipras Sees Red (Pipeline), Accepts Putin Invite
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Citi analysts Ronit Ghose and Yafei Tian highlight deposit outflows have stabilized, liquidity for the next few months is all but assured and Greek banks ...
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LONDON (Reuters) - Greece is expected to be given the green light early next week for what could add up to well over a billion euros of cheap aid and funding support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, according to sources at the bank.
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So did the current Greek government back down and agree to aim for those economy-busting surpluses? No, it didn't. In fact, Greece won new ...
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Greece's finance minister said Friday that an agreement with its European creditors to extend its international loan agreement by four months was intentionally vague to ensure the countries that need to ...
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Objects that once belonged to Greeks in Asia Minor often make their way to the Eskici Yusuf antiques store in present-day Izmir.
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Bank of Greece (BoG) Governor and former Finance Minister Giannis Stournaras has warned the Greek government that a final agreement with the country’s loan partners should soon be reached in order to avoid a frightful setback to the country’s economic recovery. Addressing BoG’s annual shareholders meeting, Stournaras underlined that “we must pursue negotiations in a spirit of cooperation and trust, and promptly conclude a mutually beneficial final agreement with our partners,” adding that if Greece adheres to its commitments, “the partners can, in turn, be expected to reiterate their decision to consider further measures to alleviate the country’s debt burden.” In an attempt to compare today’s situation with the one he had to encounter when he was in charge of the Greek Finance Ministry, Stournaras said that the reforms the current government is urged to take “are much smaller in scope and would entail low cost.” Regrading his Ministerial period, he stressed that “huge changes had to be made at a very high price for the Greek society.” Furthermore, the BoG Governor made a plea to the government to review tax exemptions, favorable tax treatment and complete the privatizations program. Moreover, Greece’s central banker referred to his sector, pointing out that an agreement with the Eurozone and the institutions must also be fulfilled for an additional reason: So that the European Central Bank (ECB) can resume funding the Greek banks, explaining that there are still too many bad loans and liquidity was damaged over the last few months.
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The memorial of anti-fascist activist and rapper Pavlos Fyssas, who has been assassinated by extreme right, xenophobic Golden Dawn member Giorgos Roupakias in September 2013, has been defaced by unknown individuals on Wednesday night. The local memorial, erected on the spot where Fyssas was killed in the Keratsini district of Athens, has been vandalized with a large red spray-painted swastika and the acronym C18, referring to “Combat 18,” a neo-nazi organization associated with the British “Blood and Honor” network. Thirty-four-year-old Fyssas was stabbed to death in the early hours of September 18, 2013, by a Golden Dawn supporter, while according to later evidence, the murder has been perpetrated on orders from higher-ups in the chain of command, triggered a crack-down on the party. This lead to the arrest of top Golden Dawn officials, who are currently under custody, awaiting their trial on charges of operating a criminal organization. In his 700-page argument, prosecutor Isidoros Dogiakos proposed that a total of 70 party members, among them Golden Dawn’s imprisoned leader Nikos Michaloliakos and imprisoned MPs Ilias Kasidiaris, Christos Papas, Ioannis Lagos, Giorgos Germenis, Nikos Kouzoulos, Panagiotis Iliopoulos as well as ex member Stathis Mpoukouras, should appear before the judge. On the one-year anniversary of the murder that shocked Greece, causing numerous anti-fascist demonstrations, a memorial to Fyssas was unveiled at the site where he was killed, featuring his own lyrics. The local council of the Keratsini – Drapetsona municipality in condemnation of the heinous act of vandalism released the following statement: “In the early hours of Tuesday, February 24, unknown individuals vandalized the memorial of Pavlos Fyssas at the site where, in September 2013, he was murdered by members of the Golden Dawn fascist gang. A swastika and fascist slogans covered the bust of the anti-fascist musician. The new, brazen provocation and the reappearance of fascists in our city’s streets proves that this front remains open. Our municipality condemns this cowardly fascist attack at the murder site, a place with particular symbolic importance to us, a memorial site that reminds our city’s residents that the fight against the threat of fascism must be constant in schools, workplaces and our neighborhoods.”
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Famous Greek art collector Ian Vorres passed away on Friday, February 27. He was the founder of Vorres Museum, located in Paiania, East Attica, Greece. Vorres Museum was founded in 1983 in order to highlight Greek Art and Greek culture. It is divided into two parts: the modern Greek art and the folklore museum. Both museums cover around 2,500 years of Greek history. Vorres graduated from Athens College and obtained a diploma in Economics and Political Science from Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada, as well as higher education diploma in Philosophy and Psychology from the University of Toronto. For a short period of time he worked as a journalist in Canadian newspapers. In 1967, Vorres was appointed Director of the Greek Pavilion at the Montreal International Fair and was the only Canadian citizen director of a foreign country’s pavilion at the exhibition. From 1991 to 1998 he served as mayor in the Paiania municipality. In 2001, he received the honorary title of Doctor in Fine Arts from the American College in Greece.
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Greece used "creative ambiguity" to win a loan lifeline from its international partners, Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said, provoking anger in Germany's parliament which approved the deal on Friday. "We're proud of the degree of ambiguity - I'm using a term here, creative ambiguity," Varoufakis told Antenna TV. Varoufakis said in one "particular discussion" at a euro zone finance ministers ...
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Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras vowed Friday to "start working hard" to implement vital reforms in the stricken eurozone country, after Germany's parliament approved a four-month extension to its bailout. "The German parliament gave Europe a vote of confidence today... Europe has now recognised that Greece has turned a new page... We start working hard, in order to change Greece within a ...
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By Marc JonesLONDON (Reuters) - Greece is expected to be given the green light early next week for what could add up to well over a billion euros of cheap aid and funding support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, according to sources at the bank.The former Greek government put in a request late last year to become an EBRD 'country of operation' and make it eligible for the development bank's support, but the process was put on hold during the uncertainty of the country's recent elections.However this week's four-month Greek aid extension by the euro zone has put it back on track and EBRD sources said the bank's shareholders -- 64 countries plus the European Union and European Investment Bank -- were voting on the proposal on Friday.An EBRD spokesman declined to comment but the sources who spoke to Reuters said approval was likely to come on the grounds that Greece would be classed as a "temporary" recipient of EBRD funds until up to around 2020.That would be similar to the 500-700 million euro, six-year plan given to Cyprus which became the first euro zone bailout country to get EBRD support last year. Since then the EBRD has taken a sizable stake in one of the country's strained banks."Yes,(Greece should get approval)," said one source who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions. "But the challenge is to define the mandate in a sufficiently narrow way and to make it temporary like in the Cyprus case."The biggest of the EBRD's shareholders are G7 governments who wield almost 60 percent of the voting power. For Greece to be approved, it needs backing from two-thirds of 66 shareholders and at least three-quarters of the overall voting power.As in Cyprus's case, Greece is being helped considerably by the fact all 19 euro zone countries will vote as a bloc in favor of the plan, and it is also expected to get support from most of the G7 and other EU EBRD members.For some of the bank's shareholders however the move into the euro zone's Mediterranean trouble spots departs from the EBRD's mandate.The EBRD was created in 1991 originally to invest in the former Soviet bloc countries of eastern Europe to rebuild their economies and improve communist-era infrastructure.And though it has expanded its reach in recent years to include Turkey, Mongolia and the economies affected directly or indirectly by the Arab Spring such as Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Jordan, some feel that any decision by the EBRD to invest in the world's most advanced currency bloc would stretch its remit.(Reporting by Marc Jones; Editing by Sophie Walker)Join the conversation about this story »
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Productive Reconstruction, Environment and Energy Minister, Panagiotis Lafazanis, on Friday revoked the ratification of the architectural and engineering study for the mine in Skouries, in Halkidiki, northern Greece, triggering the reaction of workers. Lafazanis said ...
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MORRISTOWN, NJ – The Greek American Chamber of Commerce and the Association for Corporate Growth co-hosted a fascinating lecture by Andreas Kramvis, Vice Chairman of the industrial giant Honeywell, on the topic of his book Transforming the Corporation: Running a Successful Business in the 21st Century. CPA Michael Hadjiloucas, the Chamber’s Chairman and CEO […] The post Honeywell Vice Chairman Andreas Kramvis Speaks about Corporate Success appeared first on The National Herald.
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Greece's new Radical Left SYRIZA-led coalition has prepared legislation to restore the closed former national broadcaster ERT and rehire the staff. The post Plans To Put ERT Back On The Air appeared first on The National Herald.
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Just look at them! Look at the bosses of the "Troika," have a good look at their faces, study their expressions. What do you see? What do you see when you look at the face of Jean-Claude Juncker, the recently enthroned president of the "European Commission?" That's right! You see nothing, just a vapid grin
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel (C) talks to deputies after casting her vote at the lower house of Parliament Bundestag in Berlin during Germany''''s ...
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Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, a self-confessed “eccentric Marxist” who until recently was a professor of economics at Austin University, ...
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An unusually large number of lawmakers in Angela Merkel’s bloc dissented in the vote on extending Greece’s credit. Still, the Bundestag approved the four-month extension by a massive margin: 542-32, with 13 abstentions.
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Fifteen years since his landmark film “Agelastos Petra” (the mourning rock),
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Greece's economy contracted more than originally estimated in the last quarter of 2014 compared with the previous three-month period, a revised estimate by the ELSTAT statistics service showed on Friday.
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The four-month extension of the aid program to Greece should pass through the Greek Parliament, New Democracy spokesman on Friday said in a statement. “This is a decision that includes the loan agreement and the memorandum,” Karagounis noted. He explained it should be voted in Parliament since all previous changes were approved by the House – in December 2014 and in December 2012 – and if the same thing does not happen this time, it could raise questions and have an impact abroad. “It should be voted in Parliament as it is voted by other European parliaments that have legal provisions for this; this cannot be legitimized by them and not by the Greek parliament, especially when it is an issue that primarily interests and concerns Greece,” and “because it concerns commitments of the Greek State, the Bank of Greece (BoG) and the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund (HFSF),” he said. “Its approval cannot be limited to the signing of the relevant minister and the two governors (of the BoG and the HFSF) without the Greek parliament having approved it on behalf of the Greek state,” he added. He also reminded that in the past SYRIZA criticized the previous government when it passed urgent decisions with legislative acts, despite the fact that those acts came to the parliament for ratification within 40 days. “Now, in its first critical decision as government, SYRIZA cannot say this will not pass through the Parliament. This exceeds political hypocrisy and is a simple mockery,” he stressed. He added that SYRIZA “may be afraid that many of his deputies will not vote for a decision for which it celebrated.” “It should not be worried. We will vote for it. It is now clear that the agreement is worse than ours, since we were preparing the full exit from the memorandum; but since things have come to this point, we will not let the country fall on the rocks,” he said. “We will not let them make a fool out of our democracy; or degrade the Greek parliament. Other European parliaments could not possibly vote on the extension of the Greek aid and at the same time the Greek Parliament deprived of this right, because SYRIZA is afraid of its deputies,” he concluded. (source: ana-mpa)
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“America has often put discreet pressure on its European allies to avoid a rift with Greece, as much because of geopolitics as economics,” says an Economist report. In view of the recent agreement for the extension of Greece’s bailout program, the article stresses the country’s importance because of geopolitics and its defense ties with the United States. In recent days, the U.S. has put pressure on key European leaders once more. This reflects the perils that would arise if Greece cut loose from NATO and western alliances overall. Greece quit NATO’s military wing for six years in 1974 after Turkey invaded and occupied northern Cyprus. In 1981, Greeks elected the first socialist government in the country’s history. The Panhellenic Socialist Movement PASOK pledged to kick out American military bases and ultimately take Greece out of NATO. That never happened. Several members of the current leftist government want to see Greece out of NATO. Yet, this is unlikely to happen now. Greece hosts a NATO air and sea base on Crete and an aircraft base near Albania. Greek aircraft and navy vessels are listed among NATO assets. So far Greece has capitalized on its role as a NATO member. However, its strength and bargaining power has decreased as more southeast European countries have joined the alliance. New defense minister Panos Kammenos states that Greece will stay in NATO for the foreseeable future. He is in favor of Greek-American ties, yet, as a devout Greek Orthodox Christian, he has turned an eye towards Russia. Greece’s reluctance to impose sanctions on Russia and the way some members of the new government show their sympathy for the country may hint at the creation of new alliances. Therefore, the American administration is concerned about Greece’s future in the western alliance as the Alexis Tsipras government is unknown to them and subsequently unpredictable. “The fear of “losing” Greece is palpable but has less to do with its military value and more to do with general fear of defenses unravelling, says Wayne Merry, a fellow of the American Foreign Policy Council. Any breach in the dyke would bode ill, especially as Islamist fighters in Libya are just a speed-boat ride away,” the report says.
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One of Alexis Tsipras‘ first moves when he became prime minister was to cut state expenses by selling government vehicles used by politicians and cutting down on personal security for members of parliament. In general, he urged his cabinet and MPs to lead a frugal life in tune with the economic and humanitarian crisis. Yet, after one month in power, several members of the SYRIZA parliamentary group asked from parliament president Zoe Konstantopoulou to be provided with state cars, while complaining that the reduction in personal security is a risk, according to a report in efimerida.gr citing unnamed sources. According to the report, MPs claimed that a state vehicle is necessary for work, while others said that they don’t have the means to buy a car of their own. Others argued that they may resort to using public transportation. Some MPs proposed that the state provides cars only to those who meet certain financial criteria. According to the report, some urged the parliament president to disregard the prime minister’s statement and grant state cars to cabinet and parliament members. Along with the requests for state vehicles, several SYRIZA MPs complained about the reduction of personal security from two police officers to one. On her part, Konstantopoulou promised that despite the fact that the budget for state cars will be reduced, the benefit of state cars for parliament members will remain. The report generated a reaction in Greek society. Many caustic and sarcastic remarks were made in social media accusing the politicians for claiming they are leftists and sympathize with the suffering Greek people, while at the same time want to enjoy the luxuries their position can provide.
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The maturing IMF bonds will be covered, Greek State Minister Nikos Pappas said on Friday. He said that the government and the partners have the political will to find a solution and noted that the possibility of extending what is being owed to the IMF is not being considered. The government has pledged, through a Eurogroup decision too, that it would meet its loan obligations, he noted and added that the partners have also committed themselves to that. He said that “the fiscal gap will be clarified, not in absentia of the primary surplus and that the country will enter a normalcy period.” He accused German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble of taking an extreme and aggressive stance against Greece and spoke of factors that tried to undermine the government. He said that the VAT will not be increased and that the legislation on property will be rather delayed. He added that the bill on the former state broadcaster ERT will be possibly tabled in Parliament next week. This would provide for a small increase in charges to be imposed through the electricity bills so that the former state broadcaster can reopen, he said and added that as far as hirings are concerned the priority would be given to those who had been laid off from the Greece’s old ERT. Under the bill: – Those made redundant on the 11th of June 2013 will return if they wish to – ERT will be functioning based on a democracy foundation aimed at improving the quality of the provided information, cultural and entertainment program. – There is no additional financial burden on the state budget and therefore does not become subject of bargaining developments created. – The shameful Public TV – NERIT exposed the country internationally and the Greek nation never approved nor trusted them. – Both necessary frameworks for resolving succession and for the control of financial data and activities for the purpose of smooth and streamlined operation simultaneously of ERT are being created. – An essential annual framework of reconstruction during which altogether will resolve management issues, operations, organization staff and broadcast of the program, in order to move into the new era of truly independent and pluralistic public broadcasting. Already, the Minister of State responsible on MEDIA issues has launched consultation on a daily basis with all stakeholders and individuals in order for ERT to operate immediately.
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com |
Three former FEMEN members have staged a topless protest in front of the offices of German newspaper Bild in Berlin. The topless ladies say they’re out over the newspaper’s recent message of “no more billions for the greedy Greeks.”Read Full Article at RT.com
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT rt.com |
Announced the extension until June 30 - Chapters of MFFA will only be available after the completion of the evaluation
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT en.protothema.gr |
Russell Brand and Cody Wilson are in, the pope and Mary Beard are out – the criteria for making it on to the annual list of cerebral superstars is hard to fathomRussell Brand has come from nowhere to join the world’s top public intellectuals, while the pope (voted the fifth best in 2014) has been banished from the elite group. Ruthlessly purged too are Amartya Sen, the reigning world champion of thought, and five other members of last year’s top 10: like Sen and Pope Francis, Raghuram Rajan, Kaushik Basu, Mary Beard, Peter Higgs and Ha-Joon Chang all fail even to make the top 50, transformed in 12 months from titans to has-beens.Such is the topsy-turvy world of Prospect magazine’s world thinkers rankings, a now-annual poll in which voters pick their favourites from 50 “leaders in their fields, engaging in original and profound ways with the central questions of the world today”, selected by a shadowy “staff team”. In compiling their list they give credit for their influence” (“whether or not we agree with them”) over the previous year; a criterion that explains new entries in 2015 such as Brand, novelist Michel Houellebecq, surgeon and author Atul Gawande and Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis. Continue reading...
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.theguardian.com |