'Crunch time' until end of the year for 2nd review, possible Greek debt relief

By N. Bellos

Remaining negotiations and decision-making summits scheduled until the end of the year are crucial for Athens’ hopes of receiving some form of debt relief and concluding a second review of the Greek program (third bailout).

Those two issues, while not officially linked, are often mentioned in the same breath by European creditors, along with a reference to a May 2016 Eurogroup agreement citing debt relief for Greece, but at an undetermined time and scope.

In fact, when asked on Thursday about the issue, an EU Commission spokeswoman did just that, referring to the Eurogroup decision.

Negotiations in Athens between creditors’ representatives and the Greek side concluded on Oct. 27, within an allocated timetable and on a “productive” note, as the spokeswoman said. Creditors’ representatives will return the month for more talks, aimed to conclude any pending issues discussed for the second review.

A Eurogroup meeting on Dec. 5 is the most important date on the calendar at the moment for Athens, as it is the last scheduled meeting of Euro zone finance ministers.

A successful and timely second review is deemed as an absolute prerequisite for commencing talks on debt relief, with the embattled leftist government Athens desperate to claim progress on at least this issue.

Adding to the “calculus” of debt relief are two separate and pending reports, by the ESM and the IMF, over the Greek debt’s “sustainability”.

Additionally, while short-term measures (repayment extensions, freezing interest rates) have long been discussed, Athens is now pushing for medium-term measures, with relevant Alternate FinMin Giorgos Houliarakis telling members of a Parliament committee in Athens on Thursday that the Greek government wants to itemize measures now – regardless over whether they will be implemented after 2019.