ATHENS: Greek party leaders laboured on Tuesday to agree on a new prime minister, with the rest of the nation and the EU clamouring for an immediate deal on a unity coalition to save the country's finances and end the chaos threatening the euro.
After early signs that a new national unity coalition could be formed quickly, the drive by the socialist and conservative parties to create a government that will rule only until February lost momentum.
Outgoing Socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou told his cabinet he hoped to have the name of a new prime minister by Tuesday night, a government source said, prolonging the agony for the Greek people desperate for political stability.
"The deal has not been concluded yet but the prime minister seemed convinced that it would happen soon," a senior government official told Reuters, requesting anonymity.
Deputy tourism minister George Nikitiadis denied the negotiations were losing pace. "I have the opposite feeling, that everything is going very well, things are going to be fulfilled pretty soon and we will start working in the next days with stronger momentum."
"It is my feeling that by tonight we will have the name (of the coalition's leader)," he said. "We have made our resignations available to the prime minister."
Another minister said Papandreou had said farewell to his cabinet at the meeting.
So far the parties have agreed that a "100 day" coalition should be set up to push a 130 billion euro ($180 billion) bailout for Greece through parliament and that elections should be held in February.
A UNITY GOVERNMENT, RIGHT NOW "A national unity government, right now," Ethnos daily said on its front page. "The country and society cannot endure this any more."
European Union politicians expressed their alarm in Brussels about how debt crises in Greece and Italy are shaking international confidence.
"Europe is running dry on credibility and a solution to a high debt crisis must be lower debt. The responsibility for that falls with the country with high debt and that is obviously Greece and Italy," Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg said.
Greece has repeatedly made promises to deal with its huge budget deficit and debt, only to fall short of fulfilling them, leading to exasperation in Brussels and EU demands that the new government spell out in writing precisely what it will do.
If Greece pushes through its euro zone bailout, it will indeed lower its debt but not only by exercising budget discipline: the bailout envisages a bond swap which will halve the value of banks' holdings of Greek government debt.
GREEKS DEMAND STABILITY Ordinary Greeks also demanded a new government, replacing a socialist administration which descended into chaos.
"If this government doesn't work out, we are lost," said Panagiotis Dimitriadis, 80, a public sector pensioner.
Dimitriadis has had his pension cut as the outgoing government imposed austerity demanded by Greece's international lenders, but he is still trying to help out his son and seven grandchildren.
Papandreou and New Democracy chief Antonis Samaras agreed on Sunday that the coalition should be formed, but little else.
indiatimes.com
After early signs that a new national unity coalition could be formed quickly, the drive by the socialist and conservative parties to create a government that will rule only until February lost momentum.
Outgoing Socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou told his cabinet he hoped to have the name of a new prime minister by Tuesday night, a government source said, prolonging the agony for the Greek people desperate for political stability.
"The deal has not been concluded yet but the prime minister seemed convinced that it would happen soon," a senior government official told Reuters, requesting anonymity.
Deputy tourism minister George Nikitiadis denied the negotiations were losing pace. "I have the opposite feeling, that everything is going very well, things are going to be fulfilled pretty soon and we will start working in the next days with stronger momentum."
"It is my feeling that by tonight we will have the name (of the coalition's leader)," he said. "We have made our resignations available to the prime minister."
Another minister said Papandreou had said farewell to his cabinet at the meeting.
So far the parties have agreed that a "100 day" coalition should be set up to push a 130 billion euro ($180 billion) bailout for Greece through parliament and that elections should be held in February.
A UNITY GOVERNMENT, RIGHT NOW "A national unity government, right now," Ethnos daily said on its front page. "The country and society cannot endure this any more."
European Union politicians expressed their alarm in Brussels about how debt crises in Greece and Italy are shaking international confidence.
"Europe is running dry on credibility and a solution to a high debt crisis must be lower debt. The responsibility for that falls with the country with high debt and that is obviously Greece and Italy," Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg said.
Greece has repeatedly made promises to deal with its huge budget deficit and debt, only to fall short of fulfilling them, leading to exasperation in Brussels and EU demands that the new government spell out in writing precisely what it will do.
If Greece pushes through its euro zone bailout, it will indeed lower its debt but not only by exercising budget discipline: the bailout envisages a bond swap which will halve the value of banks' holdings of Greek government debt.
GREEKS DEMAND STABILITY Ordinary Greeks also demanded a new government, replacing a socialist administration which descended into chaos.
"If this government doesn't work out, we are lost," said Panagiotis Dimitriadis, 80, a public sector pensioner.
Dimitriadis has had his pension cut as the outgoing government imposed austerity demanded by Greece's international lenders, but he is still trying to help out his son and seven grandchildren.
Papandreou and New Democracy chief Antonis Samaras agreed on Sunday that the coalition should be formed, but little else.
indiatimes.com
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