Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will submit his resignation to the country’s president Thursday, making way for early elections scheduled for September 20, government officials report.
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He has for weeks been expected to seek a new mandate from voters because of a rebellion against his government by dozens of lawmakers in his left-wing Syriza party, …
Lafazanis, who was sacked by Tsipras, has already taken a step toward breaking away from the party by calling for a new anti-bailout movement.
Greece got the green light on Wednesday to start repaying its debts and reviving its economy after eurozone finance ministers formally approved the third reforms-for-rescue package of up to €86bn.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, a senior member of Merkel’s Christian Democratic Party who has been one of the harshest critics of Greece, may have helped the cause.
The government has said its main priority was to secure the bailout funding and to repay the European Central Bank loan on Thursday, after which it would announce any further action.
The European Central Bank cut the ELA ceiling to 89.7 billion euros ($98.96 billion) from around 91 billion euros, reflecting a growing liquidity buffer and increasing confidence after Greece wrapped up negotiations with creditors on a bailout package worth around 85 billion euros last week. Missing the payment would have raised new questions about the country’s ability to remain in the euro.
The political uncertainty took its toll on the market, with the Athens Stock Exchange down 2.8 percent in early afternoon trading.
European bailout fund supervisors approved the release Wednesday evening.
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Greece has relied on ELA for months to keep its banks functioning, while also introducing capital controls and limiting cash withdrawals.
