EU's Moscovici wants Greece in euroAthens
31 jan BBC
Greece belongs in the eurozone and the single currency depends on
there being no “Grexit”, the EU economic and financial affairs
commissioner says.
Pierre Moscovici told the BBC's Hardtalk “we will do everything” to
prevent Greece leaving the eurozone.But he said the Greek government had
to respect previous commitments. The new finance minister has meanwhile
said he will not negotiate bailout terms with the “troika” - the global
institutions overseeing Greek debt.The left-wing Syriza party won last
weekend's election on an anti-austerity platform, promising to have half
of Greece's debt written off, and to roll back on deep cuts to jobs, pay
and pensions.
”We believe that the place of Greece is in the eurozone, the euro
needs Greece and that Greece needs and wants to be in the eurozone,” Mr
Moscovici, a former French finance minster, said.He added: “We feel that
it's very important for the stability of the eurozone and for the
credibility of the euro that there is no ‘Grexit'. This is why we will
do everything that is needed to avoid it.” But the commissioner said
that while Europe had to respect the will of the Greek people, following
last Sunday's election that swept Syriza to power, the commitments made
by the previous Greek government also had to be taken into account.” We
must address these issues in a quiet, peaceful and serene way.
This [new] government has to say exactly what it intends to do,”
Moscovici said. After meeting with the head of eurozone group of finance
ministers, the new Greek finance minister said he would not work with
the troika - the European Commission, European Central Bank and
International Monetary Fund - calling them “a committee built on rotten
foundations”. Greek economy in numbers:Average wage is €600 (£450: $690)
a month,Unemployment is at 25%, with youth unemployment almost
50%,Economy has shrunk by 25% since the start of the eurozone crisis,
Country's debt is 175% of GDP,Borrowed €240bn (£188bn) from the EU, the
ECB and the IMF. |