Greece debt talks to resume after Tsipras, Merkel call

Athens (AFP) - Athens will resume talks with its creditors Monday, a Greek government source said, after Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras spoke on the phone with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.Speaking on Sunday, the two leaders "expressed their willingness to establish stable communication throughout the negotiations, in order to quickly reach an agreement that is good for both sides," the source said.Greece has been trying to negotiate a deal that would unlock 7.2 billion euros ($7.8 billion) in remaining EU-International Monetary Fund bailout money that the debt-ridden Mediterranean country needs to avoid default and a possible exit from the euro.In a bid to speed up the stalled negotiations, Tsipras met with Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem.The so-called Brussels group, which is in charge of the negotiations on Greek's debt, will hold a teleconference with Greek officials Monday, and a second meeting in person on Wednesday in the Belgian capital.The developments come after EU ministers heaped pressure on Greece Friday to speed up negotiations, after a meting in Riga last week ended without a breakthrough.European Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici on Sunday told French radio station RTL: "We will do everything we need to do in order to reach an agreement."He added: "Greece's place is in the eurozone."Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, who maintained his critical tone in comments published Sunday, told Greek paper Realnews: "Our job is to convince our partners that we are working for profound reforms and a reasonable public finance policy.""Their job is to give up their sterile attachment to the 'logic' of memorandums (austerity) that has failed," he added.A survey published Sunday showed that seven out of 10 Greeks want their radical left-wing leaders to reach an agreement with their creditors.Tsipras swept to power in January on a promise to break with the austerity demanded by Greece's EU-IMF creditors. Defying his paymasters, he pushed welfare laws through parliament last month and has continued to refuse measures agreed by the previous government.Join the conversation about this story »

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.businessinsider.com

Olympiakos draws 2-2 at Panionios in Greek league

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Newly-crowned champion Olympiakos came back from being two goals down to draw 2-2 at Panionios in the Greek league on Sunday.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT uk.news.yahoo.com

PAOK lose ground in battle for second in Greece

ATHENS (Reuters) - PAOK Salonica failed in their bid to reclaim second spot in the Greek Super League after they were held to a 1-1 home draw by ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.sbs.com.au

Greek, German leaders agree to maintain contact during debt talks

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angel Merkel spoke over the phone on Sunday and agreed to maintain contact during ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.marketwatch.com

Greek tourism threatened by various factors

Greek tourism finds itself in a difficult period due to the country's economic instability, the immigration issue, the resumption of street riots in Athens, ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.ekathimerini.com

EU Commission to revise down Greek growth forecast

BERLIN (Reuters) - The European Commission plans to significantly revise down its growth forecast for Greece this year, its Vice President Valdis ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT uk.news.yahoo.com

Greek finance minister hints at strained EU relations: 'I welcome their hatred'

Yanis Varoufakis quotes Franklin D Roosevelt in a statement that seems to confirm he received a dressing-down from eurozone ministers on FridayThe gulf between Greece and its creditors widened yet further on Sunday with the crisis-hit country’s finance minister brazenly tweeting that he has become a target of hate.Upping the ante in what has increasingly become a war of nerves, Yanis Varoufakis took on his opponents by making use of one of Franklin D Roosevelt’s most memorable lines. “FDR, 1936: ‘they are unanimous in their hate for me; and I welcome their hatred’. A quotation close to my heart (& reality) these days,” he wrote.FDR, 1936: "They are unanimous in their hate for me; and I welcome their hatred." A quotation close to my heart (& reality) these daysThe Greek government may want to take [negotiations] to the wire, but does it know where the wire is? Related: What happens if Greece can’t pay its debts? Continue reading...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.theguardian.com

Turkish Cypriots elect new leader for breakaway enclave

Nicosia (AFP) - Turkish Cypriots voted in a new leader Sunday, with challenger Mustafa Akinci beating incumbent Dervis Eroglu in a run-off poll that could accelerate UN-backed efforts to reunify the long-divided island.Akinci, a former mayor of Nicosia in the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and vocal advocate of reconciliation with the internationally recognised government, had won 60.4 percent of votes with 678 of 693 ballot boxes counted, organisers said.Celebrations began soon after results were announced at Akinci's office in north Nicosia, a few hundred metres (yards) from a UN-controlled buffer zone that separates the Turkish and Greek Cypriot sides of Europe's last divided capital.Akinci told reporters after casting his ballot at a primary school in Nicosia: "When the time comes for real change, no power can stop it."Voters streamed steadily into polling stations in Nicosia from early morning, many bringing their children along to share the experience."For our future and our children's future it is important to vote," said Arman Anik, 38. "We are entering a critical period and it is important to give the job to the right person."Akinci will now be tasked with heading negotiations with the Republic of Cyprus aimed at reunifying the Mediterranean island after more than 40 years of division.A UN-monitored ceasefire line has split the island since 1974 when Turkish troops occupied its northern third in response to an Athens-inspired coup seeking union with Greece.The Turkish Cypriots, who had already pulled out of government institutions in the face of communal violence in 1963, declared their breakaway state in 1983.But it is recognised only by Turkey, which provides around a third of its budget.Voters said they hoped for a leader that would end Turkish Cypriots' international isolation."We are under stress. There are economic problems and respect for each other has decreased due to our indefinite (status)," said Nazife Kunt, 65. - 'Unwanted developments' - Eroglu, in power since 2010, won the most votes in the first round, just over one percentage point ahead of Akinci and edging out the territory's first woman prime minister Sibel Siber.But Akinci benefitted Sunday from support from Siber's centre-left Republican Turkish Party, and was seen by observers as the disputed territory's best hope to kickstart reconciliation with Cyprus.He weathered an unedifying week of campaigning that saw Eroglu accuse Akinci of seeking to remove a giant TRNC flag from the mountains overlooking Nicosia and alleging that he is backed by the United States.Akinci admitted there had been "unwanted developments" in the lead-up to polling day but thanked voters "who have tried their best for democracy".Election organisers said they were investigating reports that about 50 ballot papers had gone missing from a polling station in Famagusta.Turnout among the territory's roughly 176,000 registered voters was about 56 percent with an hour of polling remaining, organisers said.UN-sponsored peace talks are set to resume after Sunday's election following a Greek Cypriot decision to end a six-month boycott.Although a fresh dispute over Mediterranean oil and gas has soured relations between Turkish and Greek Cypriot authorities, both Ankara and Washington voiced hope last week that 2015 could finally be the year that Cyprus is reunited.But voters were more circumspect about the prospects of the election leading to that long sought-after goal."If the new leader can deliver change, then good. He's welcome," said Ugur Barani, 48. "The people we elected in the past gave us hope then did nothing."Join the conversation about this story »

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.businessinsider.com

Greece taps local funds

Greece's governors and other local officials have agreed to lend cash to the near-bankrupt central government after prime minister Alexis Tsipras ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.irishtimes.com

The Rumble in Riga: How the EU Lost Patience With Varoufakis

After more than five years as a ward of the European Union, Greece is virtually out of cash. The aid pipeline is shut until Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.bloomberg.com

Eurozone in push to spur Greek talks

Finance minister increasingly isolated as eurogroup chairman calls premier

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.ft.com

Eurozone officials seek to bypass Varoufakis to spur Greek talks

A fraught eurozone meeting in Riga at the weekend has left Yanis Varoufakis, the Greek finance minister, increasingly isolated both in Brussels and in ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.ft.com

Greek FinMin Varoufakis Explains Why He Did Not Attend the Eurogroup Gala Dinner

The Greek Finance Ministry has issued a statement following a Reuters report on Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, entitled “Isolated in debt talks, Greek finance rebel gets the cold shoulder.” The article claimed that Varoufakis has become isolated from his European counterparts, adding that he did not attend the gala dinner for the European Finance Ministers on Friday. “He is completely isolated,” a senior Eurozone official told Reuters. “He didn’t even come to the dinner to represent his country,” the official added. According to the Ministry’s statement, Varoufakis chose to attend Thursday’s dinner where he properly represented his country. However, the Greek Finance Minister did not attend the Friday gala because “he finds such events boring and he preferred the company of his friends and close associates with whom he had a much better time.”

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

A Greek Escape

A Greek escape promises good food. This comes as no surprise given its geographical position. “Here, we produce the best olive oil,” our AirBnB host, ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT clapway.com

Greek Scientists Develop Cancer Drug

Greek scientists from the University of Patras are making a significant effort to help in the battle against cancer by developing an innovative drug. The research team has been working at the Pharmaceutical Chemistry Laboratory of the Department of Pharmacy at the University of Patras, led by associate professor Plato Magriotis. The team aims to create a new potent anti-cancer drug that will specialize in the treatment of sarcoma, melanoma, ovarian cancer, breast, kidney, prostate and non-microcell lung cancer. The idea behind the drug’s composition is based on a substance isolated about 48 years ago from a Caribbean marine microorganism. The substance ejected by Ecteinascidia turbinate (Et-743) is one of the most potent cytotoxins and its antineoplastic activity is much greater than that of known antitumor drugs. Et-743 is the first marine natural anti-cancer drug and was approved by the European Union in 2007. According to professor Magriotis, Et-743 causes damage to the cancer cells’ DNA and prohibits them from repairing the damage, thus further prolonging the destruction of cancer cells. “We are trying to do something different and innovative compared to what has already been done in the past and create a drug with simpler structure than that of Et-743 that will hopefully be adequate for most types of cancer. I am optimistic. This is my life’s dream. The research is on track and hopefully we will be successful fairly soon,” noted the professor.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

Greek Health Minister: Govt Determined to Support the Public Healthcare System

Greece’s SYRIZA-led government is determined to support the public healthcare system in any way and exhaust not just all possible options of the surplus but of every cent, stated Greek Health Minister Panagiotis Kouroumblis in an interview to Athens-Macedonian News Agency on Sunday. The Minister underlined that in May, after his contacts and visits to public hospitals across the country are completed, he will be able to have a picture of the real problems and proceed to their solution with targeted hirings. “We inherited a tragic situation. The system was deteriorating for five years. The Greek government is determined to support the healthcare system and will exhaust all possibilities,” said Kouroumblis. (source: ana-mpa)

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

German Newspaper Claims IMF Is Preparing for a Grexit

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that Greece’s exit from the Eurozone would be “manageable,” although in such a case several measures would have to be put in place in order to ensure the protection of “vulnerable countries,” such as Spain, Portugal and Ireland, noted German newspaper Deutsche Welle. On the other hand, the consequences for Greece would be dire, noted the IMF experts, according to Spiegel. The German magazine referred to a confidential non paper released in March by the IMF entitled “Greece after leaving the euro.” The non paper authors allegedly refuse that devaluation of Greece’s future currency could improve the competitiveness of the Greek economy. Furthermore, they estimate that the new currency would enter into a circle of devaluations. “Consumers, businesses and investors would try to get rid of the new currency because they would fear that it will lose its value, and thus they would accelerate its devaluation.” Moreover, the lower value of the new currency would cause a dramatic increase in the prices of imported products and that would lead to hyperinflation. “If Tsipras’ government fails to obtain the necessary money [to pay the IMF installments], it will lead the country to disorderly bankruptcy. The EFSF, the country’s largest creditor, would be forced to immediately request the payments of its own loans, totaling 130 billion euros. Consequently, the Greek government will no longer find buyers for either short-term bonds, the so-called T-Bills, which are its only current means of survival,” wrote Spiegel. Spiegel also suggested that while the private sector and the free market would continue to operate with euros, the state would have to make payments with the parallel currency, which would have the same nominal value as the euro at first, but later its price would drop below its nominal value.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

Europe Continues Upward March: All Eyes on Greece Now

Traders are also closely watching the outcome of the meeting between Greece and its creditors taking place at the current moment to get an ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.moneyflowindex.org

World Press View: Greece, EU Pointless Finger-Pointing

With cash dwindling and time running out for a deal, Greece and its international lenders are blaming each other for failures. The post World Press View: Greece, EU Pointless Finger-Pointing appeared first on The National Herald.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.thenationalherald.com

World View: Greece's Government Will Confiscate Cash Reserves from All Public Institutions

After a bitter debate, Greece's parliament on Friday adopted a decree ordering all public institutions to hand over their cash reserves to the central ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.breitbart.com

Lesbos: The Sex Tourism Capital of Ancient Greece

Even though Lesbos has been linked with the idea of female homosexuality for many years, it appears that in ancient Greece it was a place visited ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

Greece upholds decision to reject Data Akhalaia extradition

Tbilisi, DFWatch – The Greek Supreme Court has upheld a decision by a lower court to reject an extradition request for Data Akhalaia, a former head ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT dfwatch.net

The real threat to Europe's interest lies in Ukraine, not Greece

The biggest threat to its geostrategic and long-term economic interests stems from a collapse of Ukraine, not Greece. Whatever we might think of Grexit ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.ft.com

Eurozone ministers ponder 'Plan B' for Greece (GREK)

The finance ministers of Slovenia and Germany on Saturday acknowledged for the first time that they are considering plans on what to do if a Greek ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT seekingalpha.com

Europe Continues Upward March: All Eyes on Greece Now

Traders are also closely watching the outcome of the meeting between Greece and its creditors taking place at the current moment to get an ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.moneyflowindex.org

Greece's finance minister channels FDR: 'I welcome their hatred'

Minister of Finance of Greece Yanis Varoufakis attends Eurogroup tour-de-table during informal meeting of Ministers for Economic and Financial ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.businessinsider.com.au

Germany's growth slows down as Greece debt issue continues

THE US housing markets saw rising demand in existing homes potentially due to easier mortgage loans. Japan showed recovery in rising exports and ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.theborneopost.com

Greek Cypriots hope election in north will help revive peace talks, says analyst

According to analysts, there is a feeling that opposition challenger Mustafa Akinsi would revive stalled peace talks between the Turkish and Greek ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.euronews.com

Greek Scientists Develop Cancer Drug

patras-lab Greek scientists from the University of Patras are making a significant effort to help in the battle against cancer by developing an innovative ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

German Chancellor, Greek PM agree to stay in touch to reach debt deal

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed in a phone conversation on Sunday to maintain contact during ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.channelnewsasia.com

All eyes on the MPC and Greek debt negotiations

Last week, the 10 commercial banks that ASP analysed recorded a combined net profit of Bt52.3 billion, up 6.1 per cent quarter on quarter and 3.8 per ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.nationmultimedia.com

Migrant crisis: Greek soldier saved 20 people singlehandedly off Rhodes beach

A burly Greek man, bent double, pulling a migrant to safety as three others who had tried to make the crossing from North Africa to Greece on board ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.independent.co.uk

The Odyssey of the Greek negotiations: from GREXIT to a new memorandum

And this is none other than the Greek Minister of Finance Gianis Varoufakis, one of whose first actions was to recommend that reporters write his first ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.todayszaman.com

EYBL: Greek Squeak, Prospects + Top Players

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Day two of the second April evaluation period gave us a stronger look at the Greek Freak's younger brother and the talented crop ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT scouthoops.scout.com

Greek FinMin Varoufakis Explains Why He Did Not Attend the Eurogroup Gala Dinner

varoufakis-eurogroup-708_1 The Greek Finance Ministry has issued a statement following a Reuters report on Greek Finance Minister Yanis ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

Migrant to Name Her Child After Her Greek Rescuer

The head of the Rhodes Bar Association Human Rights Committee, Pepy Papapavlou, visited the young woman at the obstetrics clinic in Rhodes, ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com

Mustafa Akinci elected leader of breakaway Turkish Cypriots

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Mustafa Akinci, a veteran politician with a strong track record of reaching out to rival Greek Cypriots, was elected Sunday as leader of the breakaway Turkish Cypriots in ethnically divided Cyprus.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT uk.news.yahoo.com

Robbery saves Greek climbers from quake

Nine Greek climbers who were robbed by a sherpa guide in Kathmandu told Sunday of their lucky escape after heading home from Nepal the day ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.9news.com.au

Seven in 10 Greeks want a debt deal, survey shows

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis addresses a news conference after an euro zone finance ministers meeting in Brussels February 16, 2015.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.themalaymailonline.com

If Greece goes down, no one wants their prints on the murder weapon

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - "We're going bust." "No, you're not." "You're strangling us." "No we're not." "You owe us for World War Two." "We gave already." The game of chicken between Greece and its international creditors is turning into a vicious blame game as ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.businessinsider.com

Greece and its lenders must reach a debt reform deal 'by early May'

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece and its lenders must reach a reform deal by early May to address Greece's need for cash, Deputy Prime Minister Yannis Dragasakis said in an interview with a Greek newspaper published on Saturday. Shut out of international markets ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT uk.businessinsider.com

The real threat to Europe's interest lies in Ukraine, not Greece

The biggest threat to its geostrategic and long-term economic interests stems from a collapse of Ukraine, not Greece. Whatever we might think of Grexit ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.ft.com

Bild’s journalist comment over Varoufakis 'dinner alone in Riga’ reply

German newspaper Bild’s Brussels correspondent Dirk Hoeren made a comment on twitter over Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis reaction over ‘dinner alone in Riga’ Reuters story. Hoeren also borrowed a Franklin D. Roosevelt phrase to make his ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT en.enikos.gr

German Chancellor, Greek PM agree to stay in touch to reach debt deal

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed in a phone conversation on Sunday to maintain contact during ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.channelnewsasia.com

Robbery saves Greek climbers from quake

Nine Greek climbers who were robbed by a sherpa guide in Kathmandu told Sunday of their lucky escape after heading home from Nepal the day ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.9news.com.au

All eyes on the MPC and Greek debt negotiations

Last week, the 10 commercial banks that ASP analysed recorded a combined net profit of Bt52.3 billion, up 6.1 per cent quarter on quarter and 3.8 per ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.nationmultimedia.com

The ECB is NOT planning to cut Greek banks off

Reports this morning suggesting that people within the European Central Bank have discussed ways to cut back the use of Emergency Liquidity Assistance (ELA) by Greek banks should be taken seriously. But they don't mean that the central bank is preparing to cut Greece off. Since the onset of the current negotiations between Greece and the organisations-formerly-known-as-the-Troika (the European Commission, the IMF and the ECB), the region's central bank has attempted to separate its political role from its responsibility as lender of last resort in providing emergency funding to the Greek banking system. This was most notably attempted through its cancellation of the waiver that had allowed the country's banks to access the ECB's emergency loan programme even though the bond collateral they offered in exchange for the loans (government bonds or government-guaranteed bank debt) was rated below the minimum standard usually accepted. Many, including us here at Business Insider, thought that the decision was a mistake as it forced Greek banks onto the more expensive ELA, did not really lower the exposure of the eurosystem as a whole to Greece and threatened to worsen deposit outflows at an extremely sensitive time. In the aftermath, deposits have dropped by €7.7 billion ($8.17 billion) in February alone, meaning they have now fallen by €24.6 billion since December. Media reports suggest depositors withdrew a further €3 billion in March taking that total over €27 billion. This pushed up Target 2 liabilities of Greece with the ECB (a gauge of how much the Greek banks are having to rely on Emergency Liquidity Assistance (ELA)) by €44 billion from August to February, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch. In other words, Greece's banking system is increasingly on life support. And it's unclear how it's going to resolve the current situation as negotiations between the Syriza-led government in Athens and its creditors are making slow, if any, progress and the money it needs to pay its bills and meet debt repayments is swiftly running out. Under this situation, the news yesterday that the Greek government is forcing local authorities to pull money out of commercial banks (estimated to total around €2 billion ($2.15 billion)) and hand it over to the central bank will be a concern for the ECB. After all, by providing ELA to financial institutions the ECB is effectively funding that deposit outflow on top of those already going on. Moreover, it's of general concern that this money is being called in as it is a strong indication that the government is playing its last cards to meet this month's payments. So it is perhaps unsurprising that today we hear that the central bank is putting together plans for how to slow that process by increasing the haircuts the Bank of Greece imposes on the collateral it takes in exchange for the loans, in effect lowering the amount of ELA the banks can take. But there's a crucial caveat — as Bloomberg reports (emphasis added): "[It] may be considered if Greece’s leaders fail to quickly convince euro-area finance ministers they can reform their economy and secure bailout funds". That is, the central bank is working on contingencies in case of a failure to reach a deal over extending Greece's bailout programme but it is not attempting to pre-empt the outcome by cutting off the banks from emergency funding in advance. This is precisely what you would expect a responsible institution to be doing at this stage of the negotiations. Indeed, it's what European citizens should demand of them. What is less clear is who leaked this information to the press or why they thought it a sensible move to do so given the parlous situation. If it was done to pressure Greece to reach a deal using emergency support as leverage, as the ECB did in the case of Cyprus and, we have subsequently learned, in Ireland before that, it will again mark an inappropriate overstep of its role as lender-of-last-resort to Europe's banks and into the domestic affairs of a member state.Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 11 amazing facts about Vladimir Putin

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT uk.businessinsider.com

Migrant crisis: Greek soldier saved 20 people singlehandedly off Rhodes beach

It was the image that defined a week of tragedy - and showed the world how Europe had failed to deal with its migrant problem.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.independent.co.uk

Eurozone ministers ponder 'Plan B' for Greece (GREK)

The finance ministers of Slovenia and Germany on Saturday acknowledged for the first time that they are considering plans on what to do if a Greek ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT seekingalpha.com

Lesbos: The Sex Tourism Capital of Ancient Greece

Even though Lesbos has been linked with the idea of female homosexuality for many years, it appears that in ancient Greece it was a place visited ...

READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT greece.greekreporter.com