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Pressure mounts on Germany to aid Greece
AFP - Thursday, April 29
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Interactive graphic on Greece as the European Union and the International Monetary Fund prepare a 45-billion-euro (60-billion-dollar) rescue package to avert the threat of Athens defaulting on its massive debts.
BERLIN (AFP) - – Pressure piled on Germany to stop stalling a package to rescue Greece from crippling debts Wednesday as the International Monetary Fund warned confidence in the whole eurozone was on the line.
The euro hit a one-year dollar low with a downgrade of Spain's credit rating accelerating its fall, escalating fears that the Greek debt crisis is spreading across Europe a day after Greek debt was slashed to junk status.
Greece meanwhile acted to stop speculators operating on the Athens stock exchange as the interest rate it has to pay to borrow money hit 11.1 percent, only trailing Pakistan and Venezuela in the world's highest interest payers.
And the Greek government faced growing domestic discontent with new strikes erupting.
Herman Van Rompuy, the European Union's president, said the bloc's leaders would meet on May 10 and talks were advancing to enable Greece to tap up to 45 billion euros (60 million dollars) in loans from the EU and the IMF. Related article: Some precedents of bailouts in Europe
But the Greek government said it was resisting calls in the negotiations for deeper cuts in salaries, dampening hopes of an imminent deal.
"It is perfectly clear that the negotiations with the Greek government, the European Commission and the IMF need to be accelerated," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after senior international finance officials came to Berlin.
"We hope they can be wrapped up in the coming days and on the basis of this, Germany will make its decisions," she told reporters after talks with IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn.
European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet warned time was fast running out and Germany must quickly decide whether to contribute its share.
"There is an absolute necessity to decide very rapidly," he said after meeting German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, Strauss-Kahn and top German lawmakers.
Strauss-Kahn struck a similarly ominous note, saying: "It is the confidence in the whole (euro)zone that is at stake."
With opinion polls showing strong opposition within Germany to handing over cash to the Greeks, Merkel has said Berlin will only contribute when Greece comes up with a firm plan to bring its finances in order.
Merkel, who is being asked to come up with some 8.4 billion euros, faces a key regional election on May 9 and analysts say she is wary of having her hand forced ahead of the polls. Milestones in the history of the euro
In comments likely to fuel sentiment against a bailout, the head of one of Germany's top economic institutes warned Athens would not pay Berlin back.
And two lawmakers, who met with Strauss-Kahn and Trichet, said the size of the bailout package could be as high as 120 billion euros over three years.
Asked on MDR radio if Germany would ever get its money back, Hans-Werner Sinn, head of the Ifo institute and one of the top advisors to the government, said: "To tell you the truth, no."
He also said that it would also be "understandable" if other countries such as Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Italy would see the bailout of Greece as a precedent and ask for money themselves.
The German government did try to shield Spain and Portugal from comparisons with Greece after market analysts warned the crisis in Athens could spill over into heavily-indebted eurozone states.
"As regards whether there is a comparison of Spain and Portugal to Greece, we do not see one," finance ministry spokeswoman Jeanette Schwamberger said.
However Spain's benchmark Ibex-35 share index closed down 2.99 percent after ratings agency Standard & Poor's cut the country's credit rating and warned it could face another downgrade.
The stock market in Portugal, which also had its rating lowered on Tuesday, rebounded from heavy opening losses as the government and opposition vowed to work together to ensure economic stability.
Greece has seen its cost of borrowing soar as investors, fearing a default, have demanded greater risk premiums for their loans, which in turn has pushed the country's debt even higher. Related article: Timeline of a Greek tragedy
The public deficit rose to 13.6 percent in 2009 and its debt reached 273.4 billion euros, or 115.1 percent of output, the EU data agency said last week.
The decision by S&P to slash Greece's credit status to junk levels means certain investors such as pension funds can no longer buy Greek bonds.
The Athens government's most pressing problem is to find nine billion euros to pay debt maturing bu May 19.
Prime Minister George Papandreou told his cabinet a "common effort" was needed from the EU and eurozone to "prevent a fire that flared up with the global crisis from spreading to the entire European and world economy."
But with the General Workers Confederation announcing a general strike for May 5 against "neo-liberal blackmail", his government is still holding out against proposals by the EU and IMF to cut salaries.
"We have been asked for a cut which we do not accept," Labour Minister Andreas Loverdos said.
Greek radio technicians launched a 48-hour strike on Wednesday, halting news broadcasts, while teachers also launched stoppages.
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