Eurozone, Greece fail to agree way forward following meeting


Eurozone finance ministers were unable to agree with Greece a final statement or a way to continue talks until their next meeting on Monday, following hours of discussions in Brussels to extend an international bailout.

“We explored a number of issues, one of which was the current programme,” Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who chaired the meeting, told a news conference in the early hours on Thursday in Brussels.

“We discussed the possibility of an extension. For some that is clear that is preferred option but we haven’t come to that conclusion as yet. We will need a little more time.”

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis played down a failure to reach a common position with the rest of the eurozone and said he believed a “healing deal” on Greece’s finances could be reached on Monday.

Looking calm and composed after seven hours of talks in Brussels that lasted into Thursday morning, Varoufakis told reporters that the emergency Eurogroup meeting had never been intended to produce an accord but had been a good discussion.

EU diplomats said a broad common statement on finding a way forward for Greece and the eurozone had been drafted but that the Greek delegation, which consulted Athens by telephone, had not agreed to it. The radical new government insists it will not extend an international bailout that expires in two weeks but its EU partners say it must accept some conditional financing.

By Robin Emmott and Jan Strupczewski

 

 

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