EU leaders write off half of Greece’s debt
Eurozone leaders agreed early on Thursday to write off 50 percent of Greek debt and adopted a series of other measures aimed at saving the European currency.
Thursday, 27.10.2011.
13:05
Eurozone leaders agreed early on Thursday to write off 50 percent of Greek debt and adopted a series of other measures aimed at saving the European currency. At a meeting which ended early on Thursday, heads of state and governments of 17 countries that use euro agreed to expand the European Financial Stability Facility to about EUR 100,000bn. EU leaders write off half of Greece’s debt The EU and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will also launch another bail-out program for Greece worth EUR 100bn by the end of the year. “We have managed to overcome the trap we were facing. The fact that we are still here is a great achievement for the Greek people. I think we closed a chapter of the past and now we have to start working for our future generations with full force,” said Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou. “I do believe that we were able to live up to expectations, that we did the right thing for the eurozone, and this brings us one step further along the road towards a good and sensible solution,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated after the deal was reached. The decision to write off 50 percent of Greece’s debt was based on conclusions of all 27 EU member states that decided that the leading European banks needed to increase their reserves to nine percent of their assets, which means the banks will have to raise additional EUR 108bn by June 30, 2012. “These are exceptional measures for exceptional times,” European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said. “Europe must never again find itself in this situation. That is why we must further improve our economic governance, namely in the euro area: the euro summit paves the way to a further strengthening of co-ordination and surveillance (of eurozone economies),” he concluded. (Beta, file)
EU leaders write off half of Greece’s debt
The EU and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will also launch another bail-out program for Greece worth EUR 100bn by the end of the year.“We have managed to overcome the trap we were facing. The fact that we are still here is a great achievement for the Greek people. I think we closed a chapter of the past and now we have to start working for our future generations with full force,” said Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou.
“I do believe that we were able to live up to expectations, that we did the right thing for the eurozone, and this brings us one step further along the road towards a good and sensible solution,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated after the deal was reached.
The decision to write off 50 percent of Greece’s debt was based on conclusions of all 27 EU member states that decided that the leading European banks needed to increase their reserves to nine percent of their assets, which means the banks will have to raise additional EUR 108bn by June 30, 2012.
“These are exceptional measures for exceptional times,” European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said.
“Europe must never again find itself in this situation. That is why we must further improve our economic governance, namely in the euro area: the euro summit paves the way to a further strengthening of co-ordination and surveillance (of eurozone economies),” he concluded.
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